Queen Amidala
by Lana Frare
Summary: AU. Anakin and Padmé rule the galaxy. The Empire appears invincible under the care of the powerful Sith Lord Darth Vader, and his twin apprentices, but when Luke and Leia begin to doubt the Dark Side, it could mean the end for Anakin's reign. Nightmares. Treason. Love and hate will enwrap the Skywalker family.
1. Wait for me

**_Queen Amidala_**

What if Padmé Amidala never went to Mustafar after Anakin turned to the dark side?

This Fan Fiction takes place after order sixty-six; Anakin goes home to make sure his wife and child are all right; and explains the mission the chancellor put on him, on the Mustafar system. He will ask her to stay in the capital, to wait for him there, and when she does, the entire fate of the galaxy, changes forever…

Chapter I: Wait for me

The dark night seemed endless in Coruscant.

Padmé Amidala walks across her bedroom, feeling like madness has come and claimed her mind. She rubs her eyes crazily, as if in doing so, she could erase the terrible sight her eyes had behold.

The Jedi temple, on fire.

How could it be? What could that even mean?

She fears to go out and discover the truth, yet a few more moments and she would've gone out, just like that in her light evening clothes, without a care in the damn world.

But the occasion is not necessary anymore, for her golden protocol droid enters, with that same unperturbed voice, announcing the arrival of a Jedi Knight, accompanied by that little blue droid, R2D2.

C3PO hurries towards little R2D2, almost as fast as Anakin to Padmé. And before his old friend could communicate anything, 3PO shuts him up, trying to peak at the conversation between the senator and master Anakin.

While Padmé was still in Anakin's arms, her mouth seemed to be dropping, incredulous, as if her husband was relating some cruel truth. Something too evil to even be plausible.

"The Jedi have tried to overthrow the republic," Anakin said.

"I can't believe that!" Padmé cried.

He proceeds to tell her everything, his witnessing of the chancellor's attempt murder—by master Windu!—the rebellion across the galaxy by all the Jedi, and most terrible of all, the persecution that followed.

"All clones have orders to kill any Jedi in sight," Anakin was saying.

"Oh Anakin!" Padmé cried, frightened. "Does that mean that you—they are looking for you, as well!"

"No, Padmé. The chancellor knows I stayed true to him, and the republic, he's giving me a very important mission, and when I am done, the war will be over."

In the midst of her desperation, she is able of seeing the light. He is safe! And—could she have heard that right? The war will be over!

Finally, after three long, exhausting, and violent years of the Clone Wars, the galaxy will be at peace! Finally, after fighting for democracy for so long—but, that doesn't seem right; why, it was the Jedi that helped fight the war! How could it be possible for them to be left out, or better said, wiped out? There was something in Anakin's story that just didn't seem right, something was missing, some important piece of information, but she was far too scared to even ask for more. The war was as good as over, he was safe, and that was all that should matter to her, but suddenly she remembered, with profound sadness, how much the republic owed to the Jedi order. She thought of the masters of peace who helped her during the invasion of her home planet, those who made her life and security a priority when a bounty hunter was out to kill her, and almost inevitably, she shed tears, asking—

"Anakin, what about Obi-Wan?"

He sighed and looked down, "I don't know," he said. "Many Jedi have been killed. We can only hope he's remained loyal to the chancellor."

"Anakin, I am afraid," she muttered.

He then put a hand on her face, caressing her, tenderly and reassuringly.

He explained again how the end of the war was so near, trying to comfort her and diminish her trembling fears.

"Please, wait for me till I return," he said, grimly. "Please, my love. Wait for me."

He whispered some words she barely heard, and with a kiss, he set course to Mustafar.


	2. Finding the apprentice

Chapter II: Finding the apprentice

That night was the first of many sleepless ones for Padmé. She cried for a very long time, and 3PO, afraid that maybe her condition had affected her in some painful way, broke into her bedroom several times, asking her what was wrong, and as in some delirious dream, she simply cried, "Everything! Everything!" frightening the poor droid.

Then she could manage to calm down, and indicate the droid of some made up ailment that needed no attention.

Padmé's morning was no better. The morning sickness that had been missing throughout her entire pregnancy, showed themselves with fury, leaving her dizzy for all day.

It seemed to her that nothing could possibly make things worse, till a special meeting was ordered in the senate by the chancellor.

The Republic… was dead.

The years of fighting for democracy had all been in vain.

The countless deaths and losses, what were they for?

For a rich old man to sit in a throne and be called an emperor.

For the voices of innocents to be left ignored forever.

For the work of her entire life to be turned meaningless.

For the Jedi order to die and the future be all uncertainty and fear.

And, most tragic of all, in her momentary selfish thoughts, for her child to be born in a world without democracy.

Though she tried to look at the bigger picture and suffer for the lives that would change forever, and to a most tragic end than hers, she couldn't help but being devastated for the fact that her baby would have to grow up in an empire—a dictatorship—, never knowing how wonderful and free life was before. She almost hated herself for a moment, thinking of how blessed she had been; when she remembered her happy childhood in the fields of Naboo, the waterfalls, the endless blue sky without a gray cloud, the security and comfort—all that her child would never experience like she did, it seemed so unfair. And she trembled to even imagine what kind of world was in store for her baby.

There seemed to be too many thoughts in her head that day, any more and it would explode. Suddenly, 3PO entered her bedroom—she had asked him to leave her alone for a while, so it must be something important—

"What is it Threepio?" she asked, nervously.

"A Jedi is here…" he said, just as nervous.

She rushed to welcome Anakin, ready to pass all her worries onto him so he could make her feel better, but almost as a punch in the face, the arrival of her guest made her feel.

It wasn't Anakin.

"Obi-Wan…"

What are you doing here? She almost said, but she checked herself in time, and finished, "so nice to see you! Please, do come in."

She was actually so happy to see him alive, it had been too dreadful to imagine him, alongside the other falling Jedi, murdered by the clones. Because no matter how much Anakin tried to sugar coat the truth, she could very well see beyond his words, she knew, they were murdered.

A feeling of uneasiness reached her when she saw his lightsaber hanging from his waist, that was a Jedi weapon, and Jedi were supposed to be… criminals? She could never believe it.

Padmé could barely keep her eyes on him. He looked tired, not angry nor afraid, but incredibly weary with—perhaps, life?

Aren't we all? Padmé thought.

He followed her across the room, trying to force her to look into his eyes. But she simply couldn't, and she felt as persecuted as he probably did by the clones.

"What do you want?" she asked, turning her back on him.

"I need to find Anakin."

She startled back.

"Why do you assume I know where he is?"

"Don't you?" there seemed to be some awful knowledge in his voice. Oh, Gods! She thought, please don't let me say anything that could hurt my husband!

"No," she said coldly. "I don't know where he is."

"When was the last time you saw him?" Obi-Wan's voice was iced-cold.

"I—I don't really remember. I've been very busy lately."

"Could you have any idea of where he is?"

"No," she said, almost mechanically.

"Padmé, I must find him. Try to understand, if you know where he is and you don't tell me, you could come to regret it later."

"Why?" she cried, in panic. "Is he in danger?"

"Yes."

"From the Sith?"

"From himself."

"What do you mean?" her heart started to race.

"Padmé," Obi-Wan put a hand on her shoulder, and said, softly. "Anakin has turned to the dark side."

She pushed his hand away, more enraged than afraid. "You're wrong! How could you even say that! He was your Padawan, you've seen him grow from boy to man, you—you know him better than anyone! And you still dare accuse him—"

"Padmé, I saw it with my own eyes. You can see, as well, though I prefer for you to never have a memory like that—I myself wish I could rip it from mine—he killed younglings. He's turned to the dark side. He is now a Sith lord, by the name of Darth Vader."

"I don't believe you!" she cried, desperately. "I can't."

"Padmé, I must find him. He and Sidious must be stop."

"Sidious has been revealed?"

"He had been hiding under our noses this whole time. It was chancellor Palpatine all along."

His words made too much sense for her to be doubting him now—yet it was too hard, too impossible, just too cruel. But it made sense. Their new emperor, he was behind it all, but—no, no, no! She can't possibly believe him. Isn't that her own husband they're talking about? The father of her unborn child? The man she loves more than life? No, no it can't be. Obi-wan is lying. He has to be… well wasn't he a criminal now after all? Yes, she tells herself desperately, he betrayed the republic—oh, but the Republic was dead!

What must she think?

Who must she believe?

On whom must she put her trust?

But, why was she even doubting?

"Go away, Obi-wan!" she cried, too upset to even shed tears now. "I don't know where Anakin is. You're wasting your time and you're hurting me. Please just go. If you need help hiding from the Republic—"

"From the Empire." He corrected.

"I will help you, Obi-Wan. You know I will. I'd never abandon you, but don't ask me to hurt someone I love."

Someone I love.

She said it.

THE someone she loves.

He didn't seem much changed by those words. He grinned, close to a bitter smile and simply said, "thank you, but I will not hide. Not yet, anyway. I must try once again, because I have faith, Padmé. Though I most certainly shouldn't. I have faith and I think everything isn't lost yet."

"What must you try? On what have you faith?"

"I know what I have to do."

If he said the word, she would've fainted right there.

"Please, Obi-Wan. You can't possibly say you want to hurt Anakin!"

"I don't want to. And—Anakin is gone."

"No, no, no! You're mistaken! You're resented, you're so terribly hurt by what's happened that you can't stand he's not a Jedi anymore…"

"How do you know he's not a Jedi?"

"He knew your code was broken," she said, dodging the question.

"Perhaps. But it was built with good intentions."

"Those good intentions did nothing to help us keep the Republic!" she was just saying words now, to hurt him, like he was hurting her.

"I'm sorry, Obi-Wan. I—you know I have a lot of respect for the Jedi. I truly wish things could be different."

"Me too," he said with a sigh.

He looked at her, and she finally buried her glance on his, he waited for her to change her mind at the last minute, but he knew by then that it was all useless.

He helped her sit down, and regarding her from head to toe, he asked:

"Anakin is the father, isn't he?"

If he had slapped her he couldn't have startled her more.

She couldn't say anything, just look down, with guilt, and he knows, finally understanding her stubbornness.

"I am so sorry," he said and made move to leave her.

"Wait!" she cried, "where are you going?"

"I must keep looking for the apprentice. The master is being taken care of; Sidious will soon be dead, I promised master Yoda I will see about the apprentice."

Could that really be Anakin they're talking about!

"Obi-Wan, have mercy! Now you know, I am carrying his child—and we're married."

"All the more tragic," he said, mercilessly.

"Please don't go. It's not safe out there for a Jedi."

"I know. But I will see that it is."


	3. War is over

Chapter III: War is over

Padmé looked over and over again through her balcony, but no matter how much she stretched her eyes, there was no sight of Obi-Wan.

Afraid for her old friend at first, she hoped with all the strength she had in her, for his life, wishing the clones wouldn't find him. But as her eyes moved towards the Jedi temple, she remembered where her loyalty was supposed to be.

She shuddered. With the Empire? No, never! She could never accept a form of ruling so tyrannical. So where must she put her trust?

Her hands traveled from the veranda of the balcony towards her huge belly, she rubbed it, and said to herself and to her child, "with our family. My loyalty is to no one but our family. The republic is dead, my career as good as over; and I will never be able to support the empire, nor trust the Jedi—the remaining Jedi—my husband. Oh Anakin, I wish you will come home soon!"

What if Obi-Wan manages to find him?

As small as the possibility of learning of his trip to Mustafar is, it's not impossible.

And they have the Force. Sometimes they communicate through it. And Anakin was always so close to Obi-Wan—oh, how it hurts to think of their broken friendship!

Could Anakin be capable of the things Obi-Wan said?

As small as the possibility is, it's not impossible—

Her mind takes her back to her second visit to Tatooine, and it was not very pleasant… _I slaughtered them like animals!_ He had roared. But then she thinks of their laughter, that joyous laughter they had had together, alone, through the fields of Naboo; their first kiss on Geonosis, after she confessed her love; their wedding, and wedding night… all the countless times he told her he loved her…; and all the times he risked his own life to save, not just her life but that of many friends during the Clone Wars, and his boyish, lovely smile, those dreamy blue eyes—oh it is impossible!

A sharp pain now runs through her, starting from her throat to her stomach, it is a pain that perhaps she had experienced before, that pain that comes when one worries too much, and before, she had been able to take it like a champ, but now… she had to be strong not just for herself but for the life she was carrying.

In vain she tried to cry for help, her voice was nowhere to be found. "Threepio!" she would've screamed if her strength hadn't left her and if every ability wasn't cloaked by that harsh pain.

Oh, oh, ow! She moaned, silently, and again tears streamed down her gorgeous face.

Slowly, very slowly she tried to walk inside, but any small movement destroyed her, making her feel like a thousand knives going into her, at the same time.

Her hands couldn't leave her belly, where all the pain was now accumulating. She closed her eyes, she shut them really hard as if with that action she could diminish the pain.

Had it been another woman, and not Padmé Amidala, she would've fallen to the floor already.

But she couldn't give up, not before learning of what had happened to Anakin.

Oh, I wish he would come, already!

When she managed to open her eyes, she saw him like a vision, coming home to her, with a smile on his lips, ready to kiss her, like every time… but the vision didn't have that bright smile anymore, not this time. It had a harsh grin like that of a wild animal—some dangerous predator, and his eyes—where were the dreamy, blue eyes? She saw there, like in the eyes of a poisonous snake, a strong yellow shade…

Suddenly she felt herself being carried, and a strange voice asking her questions, nothing was tangible. Everything was a blur. And unable of holding on any longer, she shut her eyes again, this time to unconsciousness.

* * *

When Padmé opened her eyes again there was no pain in her anymore.

She just felt strange, so very strange, as if she couldn't remember anything that had happened. She looked to her right and saw her medical droid. Next to it was C-3PO, and next to it was—R2D2. That could only mean one thing. But it scared her to see the Sith lord. Sidious' apprentice…

She made a slight noise… mmh …mmh… C-3PO reacted immediately, crying all kinds of things, indescribably happy, while R2D2 released a bunch of joyous bips.

"Oh, quickly Artoo, call master Anakin!" 3PO said. "Do hurry, he left us specific orders…"

"Wait, Threepio," Padmé stopped him. "Anakin is here?"

"Yes, madam. He was the one who found you while you had your panic attack in the balcony."

"I had a panic attack?"

"Well, something of that kind. The emdee couldn't give us a proper explanation, and that was one of his many diagnostics."

He went on saying how incompetent everyone seemed, unlike him, who always gave a clear answer when questioned. Padmé allowed herself to smile and even laugh a little. "Oh, Threepio, how much I love you," she suddenly said. The droid thought the comment a little out of place, though certainly true and obvious. At the word "love" Padmé put her hands on her belly, and felt how it was still so big, she gave a deep sigh of relief, learning that her little painful scene hadn't affected her son at all.

As the medical droid shut C-3PO, to explain the condition of the senator, the bedroom door was opened, and Anakin Skywalker walked into the room.

"Threepio, didn't I tell you to let me know immediately when she wake up?" he said, though there was hardly anything of harshness in his voice. It was extreme preoccupation and tiredness. As he ran towards her, Padmé couldn't help but to shrink in fear, fear for the Sith lord that was coming her way. But, was that even a Sith lord?

She now could remember her strange vision of him, with that strange darkness… those daring yellow eyes. And they were not here, not in this room, not in Anakin.

He was still her loving husband. He sat himself next to her in the bed, and he put his strong, long arm around her, and she by instinct, laid her head on his shoulder while waiting to be covered in kisses.

"Leave us," Anakin said, and she thought of how crazy she would have to be to stay alone with a dark Force user. Luckily for her, that was not the case with Anakin.

Obi-Wan had lied! She thought, not even bothered, too relief to even feel anger.

As they kissed she shed tears of joy, and she grabbed him tightly, afraid that if she let go of him, he would leave; but that could never happen now. They were together, and they were in love. He was a good man and no matter what could happen next, they would be all right.

"What's the matter, darling?" he asked, his voice trembling. "Are you in pain again? Hang on, let me get the medical droid—"

"No, Ani. Don't. I am fine, my love."

"Then, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

She took a deep breath, and after steadying her voice, said, "Oh, Ani, I am just so happy to see you! To be in your arms again, I've missed you so much!"

He now seemed to breathe easier.

"Oh, Padmé! I've missed you like you can't even imagine. I've thought about you all the time, I—didn't sleep for fear of seeing you in my nightmares."

She vaguely recalled he had been having some bad dreams about her, dreams like the ones he had before his mother died.

"And when I got here—I knew you'd be out in the balcony, enjoying the sunset that we've watched together so many times. And when I saw you, oh Padmé, I almost jumped to my death! I would've preferred to die, before watching you—"he stopped, choking in his own words. Then, he fixed his gaze on her, unable of doing anything else. When he could recover from the memory, he continued. "I stayed up all night watching you, and it was the most torturous moment of my life, right there. I would take a century of the Clone Wars before having another night like that. It was almost exactly like in my nightmares, but it was so different, having to stand next to you, watching you scream in pain—while I was incapable of stopping it. I swear I never felt more useless in all my life."

"Oh, Ani!" she cried, extremely moved. She didn't remember screaming in pain at all, and she wished he hadn't been there with her, after all. Those memories would probably hunt him for the rest of his life.

"You look so tired, Padmé. And I can't stand it. You must rest. You must get well, soon. If I have to tie you to the bed I will do it."

"Tie me to the bed? Be quiet Anakin or someone might hear you."

"Padmé!" they both laughed. "Anyway, you're not going to work at all, you hear me? I need you, love, I need you too much. I've done so much to keep you safe, and I will continue until the day I die."

He suddenly turned grim. The light seemed to fly away from his face, and Padmé, a little worried, asked him what was wrong.

"Ah, it's probably nothing."

"Tell me."

"Well, when I arrived last night. You—you didn't seem too happy to see me. It's probably just my nerves, but I can't lie Padmé. It hurt me like a lightsaber to the chest. It might be my selfish attitude, and it was just the fact that you were in so much pain, but—I don't know."

She coughed, awkwardly.

"Let's not talk of unpleasant things anymore. You're finally home and we should celebrate. I can take a break from my 'rest' to have dinner with my husband. Come on, what do you say?"

"I say I might actually have to tie you to the bed. Padmé, you shouldn't go out. But if you want, we can have dinner here."

"Sounds wonderful, my love."

"All right, then. I'll go order our dinner. And while I'm gone, don't you dare worry about anything, my love."

"No problem. I've worried enough this last few days…"

"What?" he stopped. "What have you been worrying about?"

"Um," she mumbled. "Nothing. Forget it."

"If I only could! Tell me Padmé. Don't hide things from me."

She started to shake. "I've been worrying about you."

"Why?"

"Because…" she simply couldn't mention the things Obi-Wan had told her, not yet, anyway. "Because I didn't know how your trip to Mustafar with the Separatists went."

It technically wasn't a lie, though she hid most of the truth… but well, from a certain point of view…

"Oh, I forgot to tell you! It was actually the main reason that brought me here with so much haste. I just needed to let you know, Padmé, I wanted for you to hear it first from me, and you probably already know, but you don't know that it was me. I did it. I finished the war!" he talked with mighty pride.

"Ani?"

"The Separatists lost. We have peace again!" he said, ecstatic.

"And the Republic is dead," she said with profound pain.

He stared at her.

"It had to die."

"Why, Anakin? Oh why did it have to end this way?"

"It hasn't ended. It's barely just getting started. Many changes will come, and they will only benefit you."

She shuddered at the sudden change in his voice.

"Ani..." she wanted to scream all the things Obi-Wan told her. But actual fear prevented her. Not fear at Anakin, but at losing him and the man she knew and loved. "If I look tired it's not from pain, but for the hours I've stayed up worrying about you."

"You think you're the one who's been worry…" he said harshly and a bit bitterly. "You have no idea what it's like to see the future through the Force, especially when that future is so horrifying. You would actually prefer to make the present a nightmare, just to secure your future…"

"Anakin, what are you talking about?"

"Forget it."

She ran her soft fingers through his hair, and she kissed him repeatedly.

"Seems like we've both been missing too much sleep thinking about the other. Let's make a promise right now, and never break it. We shall never spend another night apart. So we can always be there for each other, whether it is to comfort the other or to fight like savages, I don't care. Just promise that we'll always be together, please Ani."

"Yes," he said, half smiling. "Soon we will never have to be apart. But all in time, my love. The war might be over, but I have a lot of responsibilities now. There is one thing I have to do… after that, I can promise you, we'll never spend another night apart."

"Why can't you promise me now?"

"Just wait Padmé, please. Wait for me."

"Always."

"Soon, all will be like you want it, my queen."

"Queen?" she laughed. "I don't think you've ever used that term of endearment before. I don't even think anyone's referred to me that way, in a really long time. Since I was queen of Naboo."

Now he laughed. "Get used to it, my love. You will be call queen every day. Get used to it."

She smiled, he could still be so romantic with her!

Padmé made a move to get out of bed, and she walked towards her gigantic closet, looking for something to wear that would ensure her husband's jaw to drop.

Anakin chased after her.

"What are you changing for?" he asked, still like floating in the clouds, in love. "Weren't we going to have our dinner here?"

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I can't look nice for my husband."

"You are always perfect to me." He said, throwing his arms around her.

"Ani, stop! I have to get dress!"

He was still laughing when he left the room.

It was a wonderful evening.

It was the last time they would experience such full bliss.

The next night they both thought the occasion could be repeated, but there were a lot of responsibilities calling Anakin.

He was not a Jedi anymore and they still stole him from her arms? How exactly was that better? Well, she wouldn't have it!

Padmé chased him throughout their home, yelling there was no way she would let him go that night; and as he had turned all the lights out, she could only follow his joyous laugh, covering the halls.

Padmé heard his steps and laughter even more prominent now, so she knew he had no way of escaping. She reached him from behind and grabbed him tightly. He walked onwards, trying to find the bedroom, and as he walked, he almost dragged her through the floors; suddenly Anakin stopped, confusing her, since they were still a few steps too far from their destination… and she felt his body grow tense, all his muscles tighten, and his skin turn hot. She tried to call his name, but it was useless. He broke away from her and continued to walk through the hall. Padmé tried to follow him, but she had to be very careful, or else, the darkness could have made her trip, fall nastily to the floor. Suddenly the darkness of the place wasn't their biggest problem. The room was illuminated, by the strong shine of a blue lightsaber. And behind it, the face of Obi-Wan was revealed. Seconds later, another blue blade was ignited, hanging from Anakin's hand.


	4. Twins

Chapter IV: Twins

Padmé dragged herself across the halls trying to look for a switch. Obi-Wan's face being the only thing noticeable in the darkness made her shudder, especially since she knew why he was there, hiding in the shadows. She felt like an idiot for selling Anakin, because that's what she felt she had done; while she didn't reveal her husband's location, she told Obi-Wan of their relationship, and in doing so, she ensure the Jedi master's presence around their home.

He'd probably had been there this whole time, waiting for Anakin to come back to his wife.

But why was he so bent upon hurting his former best friend? Why didn't he just go into exile, hiding from the Empire he knows is after him? What can possibly possess Obi-Wan and make him so prone to revenge?

Suppose that since the order was gone, their code could be thrown out the window, too.

"Obi-Wan…" Anakin's voice was heard. "You're alive."

"Surprised?" the Jedi's voice was as calm and sarcastic as ever.

"Can you blame me?"

They both walked into each other's distance, till only a few meters could separate them.

"I was expecting you to look different. The face of the Sith hasn't truly changed you, then."

The lights went on, and Padmé's face was frozen in fear and shock. Anakin looked at her with sadness, then he gazed upon Obi-Wan with rage.

"Do not worry, she already knows," Obi-Wan said, unperturbed.

Anakin gave him a look of distrust.

"It's true, I've been here before you. We had a nice little chat, I told her everything you've done, yet she preferred to turn an eye blind and play dumb. Truly disappointing from a former queen of the Old Republic."

"Obi-Wan, you shouldn't be here," Anakin said. "Coruscant isn't safe for a Jedi. Go, far, as far as you can. You will not be needed—at least for now. The Emperor hates the Jedi, and any remaining ones will be destroyed."

"Do you honestly think we will go without a fight?"

"Oh, we're expecting a fight, all right. But in the end, you cannot beat the power of the Dark Side."

Obi-Wan sighed desperately, then he grinned at Padmé, "do you see? I was right. I hope you can forgive me for what I'm about to do, Padmé. I truly think of you as a friend, I admire and respect you, and I am sorry to do something that will give you pain."

Padmé turned whiter than Hoth snow.

"What, exactly?" Anakin asked.

"You were once a Jedi, Anakin. You can't pretend to be oblivious now. I could never let a Sith lord rule the Galaxy."

"A Sith _is already_ ruling our Galaxy, Obi-Wan. And another one will, after him. And—"he stopped, as if his mind were too busy conjuring ideas. Anakin smiled grimly.

"Obi-Wan, I do not intent to support Palpatine forever. I just need him, I need him to share his knowledge with me. After that, I will kill the Sith lord like the Jedi always wanted me to. After that, I will need an apprentice, and you could…"

"Stop!" Obi-Wan raised his voice like never before in his life. "I would rather die than pledge myself to the Sith. I see how twisted your mind has become and I can't allow it."

"You don't have much of a choice."

"I will not sit while you destroy the Galaxy, Anakin."

"And I will not be as weak as to show mercy, _master_. I have tasted the power of the dark side, I will not let myself be limited like the Jedi. I will go beyond and create and destroy as I can. You can stand by my side, _or die!"_

"I take neither of those options!"

Obi-Wan ignited the lightsaber that had been turned off, Anakin waited a mere two seconds before doing the same.

Blue blades met in the air. Twin blades clashed, angrily.

It did not seem like a battle between a Sith lord and a Jedi master; there was too much emotion in the faces of both men, especially Anakin who wasn't sure of what outcome he was expecting. Obi-Wan had that advantage going for him. For he knew exactly what he needed to do. Destroy the Sith. Indeed, it was so hard to look at the face of his opponent and see the face he had known for so long as his best friend. Anakin's eyes, still blue, shining with conflict and at times, even remorse. Obi-Wan was letting himself be a normal, coarse, human for a second. Thinking with a thirst for revenge for all the dead Jedi. Even more so, for the innocent younglings he saw brutally murdered by Darth Vader.

Darth Vader! That was it. That was all Obi-Wan needed. He needed to not think of the small slave boy from Tatooine; he needed to not think of the rebellious teenager he trained as his Padawan. He needed to not think of his partner during the Clone Wars. He needed to see the vicious dark lord of the Sith. And to know that to leave him alive, would mean the destruction of everything he always stood for. With the precision and skill that always characterized him, Obi-Wan was able of defending himself better from Darth Vader.

Because that was what most of the fight had been. Kenobi defending himself from the savage and powerful attacks Darth Vader had thrown his way. There was a ferocity there that Obi-Wan had never experienced before, not even during his duels to Darth Maul, not even with count Dooku. Darth Vader had something the other Sith lords could never even dream about. A powerful connection to the force, well, Anakin was born from the force itself! He had the highest midichlorian count of any other living creature—and he had something else: ANGER, so much ANGER and FEAR. Obi-Wan couldn't even begin to understand feelings so strong, let alone use them against someone.

Kenobi was at Vader's mercy, Anakin had in his hands both blue blades now. Just like once he had two lightsabers to decide Dooku's fate. Suddenly Padmé was next to them, imploring crazily: "Don't Anakin! Don't do it!"

Anakin seemed to melt at the sound of her heartbroken voice.

"I have to," he said like a madmen. "You don't understand. It's either him or me. And if I let him kill me, you'll die, Padmé." The despair in his voice broke Padmé even further.

And she suddenly saw everything clearly. "His nightmares!" she thought.

"Anakin no life is more important nor of more value than any other. I don't have more right to live than you and Obi-Wan. Those lightsabers and the Force make you two powerful, but that doesn't give you guys the right of ending another life just because you think it's fitting, or because you think that that's what should be done. Drop your weapons Anakin, and drop your mission, Obi-Wan."

For a second, the lightsabers in Anakin's hands trembled, he actually considered to drop them. Mostly because anything coming from her voice was almost like an order that needed to be followed.

"Always a diplomat…" Obi-Wan said sharply, with so much sarcasm that you could not guess from his voice that two lightsabers were practically kissing his neck.

Anakin was enraged by his comment. Yet he was still battling inside.

Obi-Wan could feel the conflict within him. And he took a shot.

He kicked Anakin strongly, and before the former Jedi could have time to react, Kenobi called the lightsabers to his hands and prepared to attack him mercilessly.

"How very curious!" Obi-Wan thought. "It is his emotion what gives him power. Just as it is what takes his focus, costing him his victory."

Obi-Wan would have cut him in half, if it wasn't for Padmé, who ran to her husband's aid; getting in the way of the two lightsabers. Obi-Wan checked himself in time to not hurt the senator too severely, but his swing wasn't fast enough, and Padmé's left arm fell off.

Her scream of pain was enough to drive Anakin mad. Her fallen limb threw him beyond anything he had ever experienced before.

The entire building begin to tremble, and an evacuation was quickly ordered. You could hear the screams of fear from everyone who was exiting. As well as the pregnant woman who was bleeding inwardly. And not as loudly, but more disturbing than all, were the sounds coming from the ruthless Darth Vader, as he chased the last Jedi in Coruscant while he defended himself with two blue lightsabers.

Out in the street, there was major mayhem, Padmé ran alone, screaming for help but everyone seemed to be too busy trying to save themselves.

Darth Vader stood in front of the building, as he watched the huge monument fall, loudly collapsing to the ground, till it was nothing but ashes.

The dark lord was so overcome with anger that he just wanted to use his power to destroy, and so he did. Ten or twelve tall buildings fell around, you could hear the explosions all around Coruscant, many people thought that maybe it was a terrorist attack from the Jedi, and afterwards, they were left to believe that.

When Vader could somehow recover his senses, and somewhat clear his troubled mind, he just focused on making his eyes find Kenobi. But the damn Jedi had taken the opportunity to escape him. Perhaps he was out of Coruscant already.

Resigning to the loss of his former master, he remembered what had caused his anger in the first place. He thought of his wife, and thought of her, not only sick and in a very critical condition, but with a severed limb—Padmé, mutilated by a lightsaber! By his! Oh, where could she be? He ordered a squadron of Clones to find her, but they could not give him trace of her.

Several bodies were found dead in the next few days, and many of them were women, many of them, pregnant women… their deaths had been so violent, and they were so disfigured, there was no way to tell whether one of them could be his wife or not. And since the clones couldn't find her anywhere… that could only mean—Oh no!

"I will find him, if it's the last thing I do. I will find him and kill him for what he's done!" Vader swore to the Force and Padmé's memory.

* * *

Vader was still on a total state of shock. As if he was living one of his nightmares, and at any point he would wake up, and he would find her, and they would be happy, but—hour, through hour, it was the same. He was growing angrier and bitterer.

The only pleasure he gained, was by imagining all the ways he would torture Kenobi when he found him, because, he would find him, Padmé's terrible death couldn't be left alone as if it were any other of the millions that were happening daily under the rule of the new Empire.

After two weeks in which he had been ignoring all his messages to come see him, Vader just couldn't refuse anymore. He had to see his master.

As he entered Palpatine's office, he thought with insane rage of all the sacrifices he had made to save her, just to in the end lose her like that. He thought of all the cruel murders he committed, just to be more powerful in the dark side, to be able to use Sidious' knowledge—to in the end—Oh, why?

"Well, finally you come, lord Vader," the emperor said after Vader sat in front of him.

Vader said nothing.

"I understand you needed time to grieve, but ignoring your responsibilities in such a time of need is unacceptable."

Vader stood up, yet his head was down.

"If you expect to be trained in the art of the dark side, you must cooperate, as well. I can't give you anything if I am not paid back."

"Haven't I giving you everything already?" Vader thought but said nothing.

"You must move quickly, my apprentice. I keep getting word of Jedi who survived Order Sixty-Six. No one but you can take care of them, at least I would hope. I do not want you to fail, like you did with master Kenobi. And Yoda is alive, as well. We must be careful, lord Vader. They could all reunite and create a new order."

"You can be sure, master, there will be no Jedi left in the Galaxy. I will see about that," Vader said, decisively.

"Good, good. But, I simply can't let you go without teaching you a lesson. After all, that would make me look bad, it would make me look like a bad teacher, my young apprentice. You must learn never to disobey me again. You must be punished, my dear Vader."

Before even finishing his sentence, Darth Sidious lifted his hands, and directed his hateful blue lightning at his apprentice. Vader, who saw his master's next move beforehand, was able of dejecting it, mimicking what none other but Yoda did before. Sidious could hardly believe his eyes, he knew his apprentice was strong, stronger in the Force than anyone could even dream, but he didn't expect for him to use his Force powers so soon, and on him of all people!

He stopped the Force lightning and started laughing, mockingly and acidly.

"Ha, ha, ha! Good, my boy! Good! Now, I know you're ready for any mission that I might send you to. You will be easy to teach. Soon, we'll be able of learning Plagueis' secret. Together, we will reach immortality!"

Vader grinned.

"And why would I want to live forever now? Who could I want to save from death? What could you possibly teach me that I don't know already?" his voice had grown older, darker, seductive in a way; very menacing. "The answer?" he continued, after slashing the emperor in pieces, to later move the remains and making them explode. "Nothing. Nothing at all." Bitter irony could be detected from Vader's voice.

* * *

"This is how it's going to be," Vader announced after the emperor's death. "The empire's rules will be respected; though we unfortunately lost our dear, legendary Palpatine to old age, his legacy shall live on. We should always remember what forced us to let go of the old ways to form the Galactic Empire! We shall remember the Clone Wars! We shall remember the countless lives that were lost thanks to the greed and thirst for power of the Jedi! We will find what remains of them and terminate them! We shall live in peace, justice and security! Long live the Empire" he roared over and over again.

And with every "Long live the Empire!" he was really saying, "Death to the Jedi!"

* * *

The lowliest of the low in Coruscant were not strangers to violence. To delinquency, to fugitives. They really found it very normal, and they didn't even bat an eye when they saw a Jedi Knight running through the streets.

A young boy and his sister were simply walking around, late at night, unable to sleep with so much hunger in their soring stomachs, when they saw Obi-Wan running with a bleeding Padmé in his arms.

The boy of maybe nine or ten, saw them first, and told his sister they should probably help them. The girl, who was maybe fourteen or fifteen, denied immediately. Since she had been alive for longer, she had grown accustomed to the everyday violence of the capital city. Especially since she had lived throughout all three long years of the war.

But when she noticed the woman was pregnant, her heart bent in a painful way, for she thought of how her own mother had recently lost a baby, and her life. So she ran towards them, and offered them help, as little as she could offer.

Obi-Wan looked at her all paranoiac, unsure of whether he should trust her or not. He looked much too frightened for the woman he was carrying, who already seemed to be on the verge of losing life. He had no choice but to take a chance.

He took Padmé to the kid's house, a small apartment, isolated and poor. With grey walls, and worn out floors. It was not very clean either, and there appeared to be no grown up in sight.

"Do you live here alone?" Obi-Wan asked, desperately.

"Yes," the boy said. "Papa threw us out a few months ago, and our Granma', who's the only one who ever cared about us, gave us this small place, because she couldn't afford to keep us in her home."

"Could you bring her, please?" Obi-Wan begged.

"Why? I don't know," the girl said.

"Please, try to have some care and mercy. This woman is ill, and she's wounded. She's going to have a baby, too. And I think it's gonna come at any minute, now. Please I can't do it alone. I need help."

"I'll do it," the girl said.

"You?" Obi-Wan looked confused.

"Yes, I have actually helped deliver babies before. Here we are so poor, we can't even afford a doctor, so we are taught since we are ten to deal with that kind of situations."

"Have you ever handled it alone?"

"Well, only once, but—"

"But, what?"

"She lost the baby and the woman who was carrying it. Mother!" the boy lamented and confessed.

Obi-Wan considered it for a moment.

What choice did he have?

"We'll have to do it. I am sorry, Padmé!"

When at last the time came, it seemed to last forever, though it was hardly less than a day. The labor lasted for twenty hours.

Weary, afraid, and changed forever, Obi-Wan, with the help of that teen girl, managed to welcome Padmé's twins.

A boy and a girl who now lay in Padmé's loving breast. Both babies wrapped in pieces of Obi-Wan's robes. Perfectly strong and healthy.

"Thank the Force!" Obi-Wan cried when he saw them.

The girl was beyond lovely. On image, she was all Padmé; she had her luscious and softly sweet brown eyes; her skin beyond fair; her hair barely existing, would one day be long and flowy like her mother's.

Then there was the boy. And Obi-Wan had to blink many times to hold back tears, because that boy was Anakin's spitting image. The same dreamy blue eyes, the sunny blond hair that would someday get dark… Oh, he prayed the kid's wouldn't follow their father's dark path!

When Padmé gained conscience back, she cried inconsolably at learning that she couldn't hold both of her kids. Her left arm, from the elbow down, was missing…

Obi-Wan apologized for what seemed like a million times.

"Don't worry about it," she said. "It was only an accident."

She said, as if he had pushed her without trying.

"Besides, Obi-Wan. I now owe you my life and that of my children. Ow!" she couldn't help but to moan in pain.

"I'm sorry I didn't take you to a hospital. But I—"

"You couldn't be seen, Obi-Wan. I know. Don't worry about it. Now it doesn't matter. At least you didn't abandon me. I am alive and so are my children. Soon I'll get my arm checked. I mean—replaced," and she tried to laugh but Obi-Wan was so serious.

They, of course, couldn't help but to think of a certain person with a mechanical arm. To avoid hard topics for the moment, Obi-Wan said:

"Did you know you were carrying twins?"

She smiled. "No. I didn't even try to learn the sex of the baby. We wanted to be surprised. I was surprised, all right."

"And have you thought of names?"

She couldn't stop smiling. "We had already decided on that. The boy, is Luke."

She looked at the boy. Obi Wan was holding him, and he said, "Hello, little Luke Skywalker."

"And the girl is Leia," she was holding her, herself. She kissed the top of her little head, and said "My dear! I never thought I'd have a daughter, I was so sure it would be a boy. But, Anakin kept telling me I was wrong and that we'd—"she stopped. And they were invaded by an awkward silence.

They never would've been able of speaking again, if it weren't for the two kids who had helped them.

"The kids look nothing like you, sir," the little boy said to Obi-Wan.

"Harxsh!" the girl cried. "Hold your tongue!"

"It's okay," Obi-Wan said, laughing. "I am not the father."

"Yeah, I figured," the girl said.

"Yeah? How come?" Kenobi asked.

"I saw your lightsabers a little while ago. That must mean you're a Jedi. And Jedi don't have children, they can't even marry."

Padmé suddenly turned crimson.

"Well," Obi-Wan said awkwardly. "There aren't supposed to be any Jedi left. So how can't you be sure I didn't steal these from a Jedi who was killed by the Empire?"

"Oh," the boy said, sadly. "I was hoping you really were a Jedi. I never stopped liking the Jedi. Even when everyone was saying all those terrible things about them. I knew they weren't true. One time, I was saved by a Jedi. She was young and from some alien specie I don't know, but she was very kind and pretty and she had a lightsaber. I just know the Jedi are good. Or at least they were. When I heard of the emperor's death, I was hoping that maybe the Jedi could comeback…"

"Wait, what did you just say?" he interrupted the kid. "The Emperor is dead?"

"He died of old age, like, a week ago, I think." The girl said.

Padmé and Obi-Wan looked at each other.

"Who's in charge now?" the Jedi asked.

"The guy who was second in power. He was actually a former Jedi, and he's still honored as a war hero. Oh, what was his name?"

"Anakin Skywalker…" both Obi-Wan and Padmé said.

"No, I don't think so… it was, like… ugh, what was it? Hell, I can't remember!"

"It's Darth Vader," the boy helped her.

The babies started to cry savagely.

Obi-Wan tried to calm little Luke, while the girl took Leia in her arms and offered to comfort her.

"I have to go back, I have to see him." Padmé said.

"Are you sure? Padmé, try to be reasonable. He could hurt you and your kids."

"No, Obi-Wan. He was confused that night. Angry, oh, so very scared and angry. He didn't intent to abandon me. I ran away in fear, and I thank you deeply for what you've done, but—he's the father. I'm sure that when he meets them, he will be like before. All darkness will depart from him. And with Palpatine dead, he will not be manipulated into doing the wrong thing! I have faith, Obi-Wan. I really do."

"I can't force you to do what I think is right, Padmé. But besides, I can't help you. I don't even have a place to go…"

"Oh, come with me, I will—"

"No. I will go to master Yoda. I know where he is, and together we will find what to do, the Jedi way. Palpatine might be dead, but the Sith lives on…"

"Stop. Not now, please."

"I am sorry."

"I want to help you. At least, let me give you some money, something to get you started."

"Thanks, but I must get myself out of this, alone. Someday, Padmé, I hope we might meet again, under better circumstances, I hope."

"Me, too."

"Kids," he said to them the next morning. "I know we've abused you too much already, but we have one final favor to ask. She is much too weak for the moment, but I rather think she can walk. Each of you take one of the children, and walk her to a hospital. No matter which one, just the nearest one, please. Soon after she's checked, she'll be found. And that person will cover all expenses."

"Obi-Wan," Padmé said, desperately as they had a final goodbye, "I will talk to him, I will make him stop the Empire. And the Jedi will be free, they will leave their hiding places, and they will be honored and respected once again. But most of all, free! I promise you, I will!"

"I believe you, but I don't know if you'll be able to convince him. Don't try too hard, Padmé. If it puts you or your children in danger, forget about it."

"I love you," she said, crying.

He gave a deep sigh. "I love you too. Good luck, my dear!" and looking at the two babies, each one on the arms of those incredible kids who helped them, "Goodbye Luke! Goodbye Leia! I have a feeling that I will see you again!"

And then, he was gone.

While Padmé walked tiredly towards a hospital, between the two kids, she gave a second promise: "I will not forget what you two have done. I promise you, you will never be hungry again. Neither will your family. I will help you, my dear lovelies!"

Padmé was now resting in a hospital bed, it was not very expensive but still a million times better than that cheap Coruscanti apartment. The two kids stayed by her side, and even checked on the twins every now and then.

When word reached Darth Vader of one Padmé Amidala who checked herself in a cheap hospital of the Capital City, while he was out in Alderaan where he heard a bunch of Jedi had hidden, he left everything behind in the hands of the 501st to go find whatever it was life had given him back.

If it would've been an imposter what he found in Coruscant, I don't think the Galaxy would've been able to survive the attack.


	5. Bloodline

Chapter V: Bloodline

When Vader entered that hospital room, his breathing was so loud, it could be heard by anyone on that floor.

When he saw Padmé again, when he could hold for the first time his children—oh, it didn't seem real, after thinking them dead! The dark shade of yellow that had covered his eyes ever since he killed the emperor, left him.

A dreamy blue color returned, and Padmé was fooled into believing she had the same Anakin with her again; she actually thought he was the same flirtatious boy who used to say, "You're exactly how I remember you in my dreams," but, soon she would learn.

Soon she would know Darth Vader, and soon she would stop being the woman she had been till that moment.

Padmé had hoped for the best.

She had dreamed big, which only made her disappointment so much bitter and hard to accept.

That the Republic could be revived?

That the Empire could perish with its dead ruler?

That—that the Jedi could be forgiven?

Could she really be so much of a fool?

Oh, how bitter when she learned of Anakin's plans!

The Empire shall live, and the Jedi would still be persecuted, every single one of them, and most of all, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Darth Vader had sworn to kill him, and by the Force-! He'll do it.

No matter how much she begged, it was of no use.

Obi-Wan better stay hidden forever! Padmé thought, afraid for his life.

When she even tried so much as to explain all he had done for her and her children, Anakin became so jealous and infuriated, that his eyes actually turned yellow, his skin appeared grayer, and his hair darker.

And his voice, oh worst of all, was his voice!

For when he entered Darth Vader mode, his voice gained a powerful, deep and rich tone, so different from the young, boyish Anakin Skywalker.

And when she begged him to give democracy back to the people, oh he wouldn't have it!

He remembered still, so vividly, the Clone Wars, and the reason for the war was still so unclear to him, he thought that the common people simply couldn't be trusted to decide for themselves.

Could he really give power to people who were so easily manipulated? Could he risk having to leave his family, time and time again—even more than he would have to, anyway—just because a war has broken?

No, a dictatorship, if Padmé wanted to call it that way—was the best and most logical way of ruling. Besides, he was so used to absolute power by now, to be feared, to be respected, to have anything done by simply ordering it, could he really give up so much power?

No! It was impossible! And after several changes, and a rebellion that broke shortly after Palpatine's death, the house of Skywalker was pronounced.

It ruled over almost all that had once been the Old Republic, and afterwards, Palpatine's short lived empire. Anakin Skywalker was the emperor, and his wife, Padmé Skywalker now, his empress. Though they were known across the galaxy as Darth Vader, a name that was sure to infringe more respect and reverence, and Queen Amidala, given her old title as queen of Naboo. Their daughter was known as Princess Leia of the Galactic Empire; and their son was called Prince Luke Skywalker, being the only one on whom people actually bother to throw in the famous last name, as well.

The Skywalker Dynasty was so powerful, some people even compared it to the Force itself!


	6. The rule of two

Chapter VI: The rule of two

Luke and Leia had now reached the age of thirteen.

They had grown up with every possible comfort and luxury a person could ask, while across the galaxy, millions of people were starving, crying, dying, and cursing the very name of Skywalker.

It was a rough time for everyone, well—almost everyone.

The members of the Empire lived full and easy lives. Their sons and the sons of theirs, would never know that there was such a thing as not getting whatever it is that you might wish.

Great tall castles were built in Coruscant, Naboo, and Alderaan for the Skywalker family.

There was not a planet in which they could land and not find a great, tall building, where they could spend as much time as they would like, with a hundred servants who bended their backs as they passed by; Leia could get as many clothes as any girl could dream, yet she disliked the attires Naboo placed on her.

Their custom of using decoys for their rulers wasn't lost with time, yet both Luke and Leia refused to use those ridiculous, expensive clothes Padmé still wore.

They always had a dozen stormtroopers (Clones had stopped being used by that time) following them and guarding them.

And of course, they had been trained by Darth Vader. From the time they could walk, they were taught the ways of the Force. Vader thought both of them would make powerful Sith.

Though Padmé's heart almost stopped when Anakin told her of his plans for their children, she soon lost the fear, for there really didn't seem to be much of a danger surrounding the children.

Luke and Leia went through pretty much the same training Anakin had with Obi-Wan. Of course the big difference appeared when it was time to control their emotions.

The Sith didn't have to control them nor repress them.

Their wildest emotions were unleashed, making them more powerful at that tender young age than Anakin could even imagine when he was that old. He remembered with anger how his old master managed to hold him back, because he was jealous, because they all feared him and his power. Well, Luke and Leia would never be controlled like that!

They would be more powerful than even Anakin was, and he was damn powerful those days. One time, as he was lying next to Padmé, he let go of any kind of regret for killing the Jedi, for betraying that old fashioned order that always made his life so miserable. Because of the Jedi order, he lost his mother; and had he not destroyed them, he would've lost Padmé and his children.

Though Anakin always trained his kids to be Sith, they were closer to a grey Jedi.

Darth Vader was ruthless; he was still spending a great part of his life in hunting the remaining Jedi, and he didn't even care for politics, so, even though in name the galaxy belonged to him, it was really in the hands of Queen Amidala. Unfortunately, only Naboo was so lucky in the long run.

And she kept her politics, though they were hardly ever followed. The imperial officers made it seem like everything was as well as during the Old Republic times, though they were growing worse and worse by every day; times appearing darker and more uncertain for the common people, especially alien species.

And since Padmé hardly ever left Naboo, there was no way she could know how badly things were, and had she known, the queen most certainly would've done everything in her power to fix it; she would had given every breath in her body to help the Galaxy—if only she knew!

The people of Naboo were so well, they could hardly imagine such a cruel reality outside their planet.

Luke and Leia also lived in the Skywalker castle on Naboo, though they did travel a lot, mostly to Coruscant with their father, and they would've noticed the actual state of the Galaxy immediately, if it wasn't for the fact that they never explored or went anywhere alone. Stormtroopers and imperial officers being most of their company, as well as rich families who couldn't care less about anyone who wasn't them.

And Anakin had certainly broken the promise he made to Padmé the day he found her on that poor hospital bed in the capital city, for he definitely left her to sleep alone, afraid, though safe, many, really too many nights. At first, he had tried, really hard, to be there with her every night, but he just found it impossible after a while; there was a rebellion who had deigned into destroying his empire, and he'd never allow it, though it was very unlikely to think a group of small rebels could make any difference to the Skywalker family—to the dark lord Vader, and the two future Sith, who were so young and destined to be stronger. Really, though, he couldn't take any chances, so the empire was set to destroy the rebellion, which took Anakin more and more from Naboo.

Yet, when Anakin was home, he never failed to make his queen happy. Padmé had lost her fear to the Sith, because she almost never got to see him; with her, Anakin was all love and affection, and though he seemed a bit too disciplinary with the twins, he did love them as much as Padmé.

On one occasion in which Vader had spent several hours training the twins, Padmé broke into the bedroom, interrupting, which upset all three Force users.

"Mother, now is not the time!" princess Leia said.

"Don't talk to your mother like that, young lady," the emperor immediately reprimanded her.

"Well, don't you always say that nothing should come in the way of our training!" she cried, indignantly.

"I am sorry, darling, I didn't mean to interrupt, but I need to talk to your father."

"Well, we can postpone this, I guess." Anakin said and left the room to go with his wife.

"I gotta tell you," Luke said to Leia when they were alone, "I am a little relieved. This day seemed to go on forever."

"Come on, Luke! Don't you want to be a Sith?"

"To tell you the truth, I don't really care."

"You're hopeless! And you're gonna come to regret this when I beat you!"

"You? Beat me?" he laughed.

"Why, yes! Why do you smile so much? Don't you know that only one of us can be a Sith?"

"What?"

"Yes, there can only be two Sith, and there is father and then there's going to be one of us. I think it's going to be me. If you don't step up, and really focus on your training. I am going to be a Sith lady."

"When has father ever said that there can only be two?"

"Never. But I know it."

"How?"

"I read it in a book about the dark side. I stole it from his castle in Mustafar."

"What! You can't steal from him! That's so wrong—"

"Oh, shut up Luke. He didn't even use it. But, now you know, so you have to try harder."

"I don't need to try harder, because there's not such a thing as a rule of two… besides, I'm already so much stronger than you."

"Is that so?" princess Leia smiled, and a red lightsaber was ignited.

Luke smiled, too, and their duel begun.

Luke had a better ability, though he was mostly too reckless, he had style as well, not very similar to his father, but just as strong and effective; yet Leia wasn't so easily beaten, she was far more emotional, she was like Anakin in that way, and she could easily get angry, using that emotion against her opponent, in this case, her unbelievably powerful brother.

Both red blades clashed, making noise, and calling to the attention of their parents, who soon enough were inside again, to stop the fight.

"Oh, what's the matter?" Padmé cried, preoccupied.

Vader took the lightsabers in his hands.

"Oh, it's nothing," Leia explained. "We were just practicing on our own."

"You shouldn't play with lightsabers without your father's supervision!" Padmé scolded, "You could really get hurt with those things!"

"Playing?" the twins seemed offended.

"We weren't playing. We were practicing mom," Luke said. "One does not play with a lightsaber. It's an art form, you know. A great weapon…"

"Exactly, Luke. A weapon. So you can't just use it any time you want. Anakin, tell them!" she waited for her husband to support her claims, but he seemed more impressed than annoyed at finding them fighting.

"Leia, if you hadn't jumped at that last minute, Luke would've cut your head off. You need to be more mindful. I always tell you. You're always ruled by your emotions, at some point you have to learn to control them."

"Not exactly what I had in mind!" Padmé cried, very bothered.

"What can I say, Padmé? That was an impressive fight, my apprentices delivered."

"They're not just your apprentices, Anakin. They're your kids!"

"Lord Vader, I was really good, wasn't I?" Luke said, happily.

Padmé opened her eyes very widely. "Did Luke just call you, 'Lord Vader?"

Anakin avoided her gaze.

"That's the name they call me, while we do the Sith training." Vader explained.

"Uh? And you're okay with that?"

"Well, Leia started calling me that as a joke a long time ago, and I thought it was actually fitting here…"

"Well, I don't like it."

"Why, mother? It's the most respected name across the galaxy. It's the name that constantly reminds people of who they have to thank for the fall of the Jedi order—"

"Stop!" Padmé shut her up. She just could never get used to the way people thought about the Jedi.

An awkward silence then followed.

Padmé tried to reconcile. "You know, your father was once a Jedi Knight."

"Yes, but he left them when he discovered how corrupt and evil they were. And he saved the Galaxy when they tried to take over… and we couldn't be living together as a family if he stayed a Jedi! How could you ever defend them?"

"The Jedi were keepers of the peace, Leia. They weren't all bad. Maybe they weren't perfect, but definitely…"

"Padmé!" Anakin cried.

"Right… all right. I will go. I'll let you get back to your 'Sith training', excuse me!"

And she left them, abruptly.

Luke looked pensive for a moment.

"Well…" Vader resumed. "Let's continue. I say we can go on with the lightsaber training. Come on… Luke, are you listening?"

He really wasn't.

"Luke!" Leia kicked him.

"Uh? What?"

"Could you get back to your training, young man?" Vader asked, sharply.

"Yeah… sure. But, father, could I ask you something first?"

"Go on."

"It's about the Sith code."

"Yes?"

Leia started shaking.

"What can you tell us about the rule of two?"

Leia wished she could force choke him, right there.

Vader considered it for a moment. "Where have you heard of it?"

Through the Force, Leia told her brother to shut his mouth.

They had a special connection that not even Vader could intercept.

"I just… heard it. Is it true that there can only be two?"

"Well, that is part of the Sith code."

"Oh!" Luke exclaimed.

"But don't worry, son. We will not follow that foolish rule. I am so sure that that was the rule that gave the Jedi their advantage over dark force users."

"But if we don't follow the rules, how could we become great Sith…"

"Listen to me, both of you. I am a Sith lord, that will never change. But I don't intend to follow any rules. Let's say I am not any more loyal to the Sith code than I was to the Jedi. I follow only the Force. And you must always do so, too. Forget about any rules, codes, or traditions. Forget about politics. All the power in the world comes from the Force. Trust in its power, you always must! Do you understand?"

They didn't, but they nodded along.

Anakin never cared for the Sith.

He never even respected them as he did the Jedi.

But since it was the ideology that gave him more freedom and sense of power—the one that didn't seem to have any limitations, he remained a Sith lord, and he intended for his kids to be as well.

But it was not so easy.

He spent years trying to get them to try the dark side, but it was impossible without risking their humanity, which Padmé wouldn't allow to be at risk.

The twins were far too happy, far too good.

Could they still be as powerful as Darth Vader?

He wasn't certain.

But he kept trying. Though he knew—

Luke and Leia couldn't be great dark force users because their lives had been too easy.

What did they know of pain?

How can they know pain? If he doesn't want them to feel it…

They would never understand what Anakin had gone through to become a Sith…

What pain and anger could he inflict on them?

Anakin had been practically forced to be the way he was, all he suffered:

Slavery.

Brutally losing his mother.

Murdering an entire village of people in revenge.

Committing genocide.

Could Luke and Leia really pledge themselves to the Sith?


	7. Dinner with Vader

Chapter VII: Dinner with Vader

Six months before Luke and Leia's twentieth birthday, the preparations for the party had already started.

It was going to be a glorious day for the Empire, the birthday of their young aristocrats.

Yet they didn't really seem to care about it at all.

Their mother had tried to talk to them about it but she could not get them engaged into a conversation—they simply didn't care.

They had other things occupying their minds, each something very different.

"What's the matter, Luke?" Padmé asked her son.

"Nothing. Nothing at all," he would say.

"What's bothering you, Leia?" she asked her daughter.

"Oh, mom!" she would say, unlike Luke, she just had to speak her mind. "I just wish father would come!"

Padmé turned a sad face.

"We all do, honey," she said.

"It's been so long!"

"I know."

"I fear he won't be back in time for the party."

"Let's hope he does…"

"Do you know where he's been?"

"No," Padmé said sadly. Inside her head she said, "Looking for Obi-Wan…"

And yes, Darth Vader dedicated a big part of his life in hunting down Jedi; but most of all, his old master.

Luke had been quiet for a long time during the family dinner, Padmé and Leia were starting to interchange looks of concern.

"Isn't the food to your taste, son?" Padmé asked.

Luke didn't answer.

Leia tried to get through him using the Force.

It was of no use, so she had to use physical force, kicking him under the table.

"Luke!" she cried. "Mother's talking to you."

"What? I'm sorry mother…"

"Don't worry, honey. But stop pretending you're fine. Be honest with us, do tell us, what's bothering you?"

He looked at both off them alternately. Gave a deep sigh, and swallowed his words.

A royal guard broke into the behemoth dining room, so they all stopped talking.

"Your Majesties," the guard said. "Master Skywalker has arrived."

All three of them gasped.

"Is he coming to dinner?" Padmé asked.

"Yes, he announced he'll be arriving shortly."

"Oh!" mother and daughter exclaimed, happily.

"I've already finished," Luke said, carelessly. "I'm going to sleep."

"Wait, son. Aren't you going to stay and welcome your father? He's been gone a really long time, and he must really miss all of us."

"I'm tired," he said and left the room.

When Anakin came to his family again, not even his dark robes could hide the brightness that invaded his still handsome face.

First, he ran to Padmé and took her in his arms, they shared a short, regal and sweet kiss, hiding all the longing and passion that was devouring their souls. But, oh well, their daughter was there. And he was glad to see that small frame of a woman, so sweetly pretty while so strong and full of free will.

He gave her a hug and kissed the top of her head, after sitting down in the middle of the two women, he could smile freely like he only did in Naboo.

But it was a short-lived smile, because he soon noticed there was a family member missing dinner.

"Where's Luke?" he asked, somewhat dryly.

"He ate already," Padmé explained.

"So? Couldn't he stay and welcome his father?"

"Well, he was tired, Anakin."

"Nonsense. Tired of what? I seriously doubt he's been training much. Well, Leia?"

She blinked, surprised. "Well, we've continued our training on our own, father. Like you instructed us. And he's been doing great, pretty much like always. I don't think that's what's tired him."

"Then what is it?"

"I—I don't know."

"Why do you stutter?" he asked, sharply. Padmé looked at him, angry.

"I—I don't!" Leia yelled.

"You—you are!" he said, mockingly.

"Anakin!" Padmé cried, enraged.

"What?" he asked, not understanding what he did wrong.

"I know you've only got here, but may I remind you, you are home. Not in some political meeting. This is your daughter you're talking to, not some officer or subordinate!"

"Don't fight," Leia pleaded. "Forgive me, father. Sometimes, I get carried away by anger, and I snap. I shouldn't raise my voice with you. Sorry."

"Whatever. Tell your brother to come down."

Leia made a move to leave the table but Padmé stopped her.

"No, Leia. Don't."

"Excuse me?" Vader asked. His voice growing deeper. Not louder, certainly it could almost be a whisper, which made him sound menacing. "Do as you are told."

There appeared a little flame in his eyes, he looked at them as he would look at the imperial officers when they flaked and he needed to put them in check, though with them it was easier. If they ever dared question his orders and authority, he could just force choke them. And he did that, more often than not.

"But I can't do that now," he actually had to tell himself.

Leia looked conflicted, unsure of whether she should obey her mother or father. She respected Padmé more than anyone else in the world, but her father possessed more than just parental authority, he was her master. And she should always obey her master, though she never thought one would interfere with the other.

She looked at her mother and thought she would understand.

She looked at her father and knew that he wouldn't.

It wasn't that hard of a choice, in the end.

"I'll go get him," princess Leia said.

"Good," Vader concluded.

Padmé threw her husband a look of disappointment.

"For crying out loud, Leia! You know your brother isn't well, so please, just—go to your room, or do what you want, just leave him. Do you understand? Leave Luke alone!"

And she stormed out.

Anakin chased after her.

As Padmé walked the stairs towards her room, she could hear her husband calling her name, a hundred times, but she didn't feel like answering him. So she ignored him, infuriating him.

"Padmé! I'm talking to you!" he cried.

She just kept walking.

Anakin's blood was boiling. Hot, strong emotion stealing any common sense left in him. He lifted his human hand and he detained her. It wasn't painful, that didn't hurt her. Not at all. It simply kept her from walking or doing any kind of movement.

When he finally was an inch of distance away from her, he stopped. And tried to put a hand on her shoulder. She pushed it away.

"What?" he cried.

"Don't touch me!" her voice was shaking, but it was loud and determinate.

Anakin was too shocked to even react. Could he have heard that right?

Padmé took advantage of the moment and ran for her bedroom. When he recovered from the surprise, he followed her. But, as he tried to enter the room—why, it was locked! What could she mean by doing that?

"Padmé…" he pushed back all his basic instincts so he could speak calmly. But it was too hard, before he could realize, Vader was shouting. "Open the door! Open it, now!"

She wouldn't do it.

He grabbed the doorknob and ripped the door from the walls. She looked at him, terrified and ran into her private rooms. She was in so much haste that she forgot to close the doors. Vader did that for her. There they were in those closed rooms, so isolated from anyone (there no one could hear anything they did or said), so cold and gray; Padmé looked incredibly lost.

She threw herself into the bed and began sobbing.

Her tears extinguished the dark flame in Anakin.

He sat next to her in the bed, and begged her for forgiveness, though he didn't even know what he had done wrong.

Suddenly, he tried to think of it. What could he had done to bother her so much?

He had been away for months, and their small talk wasn't even long enough for him to even say anything stupid; so, it must've been something he did before going. But, what was it? He feared to even ask.

"Please, leave me alone for a minute," she asked, desperately.

Anakin's soul was shattered.

"What have I done?" he asked. "Please, tell me, Padmé. I can't stand to see you like that, especially if I am causing it."

"I just—I miss you so much, Ani!" she cried, voice full of emotion.

He was more confused than ever.

"Then, why were you running from me?"

"Because you were chasing me!"

"Because you ignored me."

"I just couldn't stand Vader!"

"What do you mean, Padmé?"

"What's that on your neck?" she asked, softly stroking it and avoiding his question.

"A scar."

"New."

"Well, I've had it for a month or so…"

"Please."

"Yes, new."

"Who did that to you?"

"An enemy."

"Who?"

"I didn't ask for a name."

"You know what I mean. That scar was made by a lightsaber!"

Anakin sighed. "A Jedi tried to kill me."

"You mean he defended himself from you."

He wished he could finish the conversation by ordering it. He wasn't used to doing anything that didn't please him.

There came a long, awkward silence.

"Was it anyone we knew?" Padmé finally said.

"No, I don't think so."

It was her turn to sigh, but deeply sad and melancholically.

"Did he survive?"

Did she even have to ask?

"No."

She laid herself in the bed, and wrapped herself in the white sheets, though she knew she wasn't going to sleep that night, she wanted to get rid of him.

He was glad and relieved for the conversation to be over. He turned off the lights, took his shirt and pants off, and got under the covers with her. When he tried to put his arm around her, she slapped it back. If she had taken his lightsaber and stabbed him with it, she couldn't have hurt him more. He was shaking now. Could it be that… he had lost her?

Not her, exactly. Since she could never leave him. He wouldn't allow that. But—her love?

Was her love all gone?

Yes, there had been a long time since they first fell in love, but, could a love so strong ever be over? He felt as strongly for her as he did the day they were married so he can't blame time for her coldness. Who should he blame?

His human hand was on her waist and soon he brought her close to him, he kissed her forehead softly, and wetted her with his tears. If she doesn't love me anymore, he thought, I'll kill us both right now.

"Don't turn me away," he whispered. He then kissed her.

She resisted the kiss, at first. But then, she was trembling, and it had been a long time since he had made her tremble out of something other than fear.

There was no fear for the moment.

She got up, and he thought she was going to leave him, but she instead grabbed his face, her mechanical hand and her soft human one on each cheek, and she kissed him desperately. It was a kiss like the ones they had during the Clone Wars, when they both knew that every second alone was too precious to waste it. In those times, they had a ticking clock at every meeting, because soon he would have to go to a battle, soon he would have to go to report to the counsel. And after he was gone, there was no telling as to whether he would be gone for a day or a month. And then they might see each other again, but at every chance of meeting, they could never be alone. Someone was always there, making it impossible for even a loving or playful glance to pass between them; it was pure torture, perhaps even more torturous than when they kept them apart; because alone, they could think of the other freely, like they truly felt, but being together while keeping their marriage a secret? Treating each other in friendly but cool manners? Oh, when he saw the way other men looked at her, thinking her a free woman, he simply could understand why murder sometimes was so easy. But their times together made up for all that, when she kissed and caressed him, like she was right now…

But, what was driving her so madly?

It couldn't be the fight that they just had.

Why was she loving him as if she knew that they'd soon be separated?

As if the war was still going and he would soon have to leave her to sleep night after night alone.

But, well, it's not like he could complain!

"I love you so much!" Anakin whispered at her ear, while fighting for breath.

But she didn't say it back, oh why didn't she say it back?

He couldn't doubt that she felt it. Not after a night like that.

If only she would say it!

He had to ask. Even while shaking at the fact that there were two possible answers, and he could only stand one. He only wanted to hear one. But he had to know.

"Do you still love me?" he asked, and his voice was surprisingly together, not like him, inside.

She looked deep into his blue eyes.

"Anakin, I love you most desperately. So much, with so damn much intensity, that I fear my heart will snap at any moment now."

He was thrown into an adrenaline frenzy. So deliciously sweet. He grabbed her even more tightly, but, what! She still shut him out.

"Then what's the matter?" he asked, in despair.

"I can't stand that you're gone."

Had she lost her mind?

"What are you talking about? I am right here!"

"You are here, and then you're gone."

"I'll never go again if that's what troubling you."

"You don't understand."

Clearly, he didn't.

He wanted to keep his thoughts for himself, but Padmé was really getting on his nerves now. What in the world could she be complaining about?

"I wasn't supposed to be here tonight, you know."

"I know."

"There is a battle, happening as we speak, I am sure."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, but since there aren't any Jedi there, I left everything behind to be here tonight."

She didn't look impressed.

"I let the stormtroopers handle that. I am sure you know the rebellion against our Empire has gained more strength. They will be crashed, of course, but still, they're taking more of my time than I ever would've expected."

"Yes."

"But it didn't matter to me. I—I got your message."

She looked confused.

"My message? What message?"

"Didn't you send me one?"

She tried to remember.

"Oh, yeah! Like five months ago, I think. When did you get it?"

Probably almost immediately.

"A few days ago. But it was effective, you know. And sweet."

Not like her right now.

"'Just come home to dinner' it was simple and short. But it worked. And here I am."

"Oh!" tears streamed down her face.

"What?"

"It wasn't effective at all! I called for Anakin, and I got dinner with Vader!"

Again with her eagerness to use the two names as if they didn't mean the same person!

"Padmé, those are just names. They don't matter. I am just a man who loves you, and who always will. Call me whatever, my feelings will never change."

"But you change!"

"I don't!"

"An… Anakin. Have you noticed…" her words came trembling, reluctantly. "Have you noticed the way people look at you, with more fear than respect?"

He surely did and he loved it.

"Well, have you noticed that Luke and Leia look at you that way, too?"

"They respect me, I don't think they fear me."

"Anakin they tremble and crumble when you so much as look a bit displeased. They quickly leave the room when you speak to them as Vader. They have never disobeyed you. Even I sometimes—"

"What? Finish your sentence."

"Sometimes I am afraid of you!"

Was she actually saying those words?

"You can't possibly mean that."

"It's true. Because sometimes I am not with my husband. Sometimes I have to share my table or bed with a stranger. With a strange man that I don't like and who is able of cooling my skin, and make me shudder. Afraid to even say what I truly think for fear of meeting Vader."

He was silenced, yet his look said, go on and speak now or you'll never be able of letting it out.

"And the worst is that it's always so unexpected. I can be laughing and smiling with Anakin and in a matter of seconds Vader appears and I'm left frozen in panic. When I hear the terrible things that you do—that Vader does… I don't know… I feel as if I had committed those murders! And I am so invaded by guilt that I could just… die. Resign. I don't deserve to be a queen. Like you don't deserve to rule the galaxy. What have we done for the people? Have we lead them? No, they've been pushed aside."

"Have you ever seen anyone who suffers?"

"No, because you've let Naboo in my hands. But I've heard of the way people live across the galaxy…"

"Who's been telling you things?" he said as Vader came up, grabbing her tightly with not a trace of tenderness.

She jumped, and he finally understood what she had been talking about.

He meditated the situation and he stared at her beautiful, troubled face.

He wanted to cry out, "This is the way things are. Accept them but still love me."

He limited to say, "I will try to make things better."

His empty promise was enough to keep her calm for the remaining of the night.

In the morning he intended to at least make her happy during breakfast. He wanted Padmé to see him as a kind, loving, family man. He had planned compliments he would give Luke and Leia, and even propose a trip to visit Padmé's family.

But as the two rulers of the Galactic Empire sat in front of their food, waiting patiently for their twins to come down, they were left to go hungry, for their kids never came.

Anakin wanted to dragged them using the Force, for ruining his so well thought out plan, but he still had the ability to control himself, with her.

"Do you know if they had breakfast earlier?" Anakin asked.

Padmé shook her head.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I guess you were right. They don't even want to be in the same room as me."

"Don't say that, I am sure it's something else. Luke's been really down for some time now."

"What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know. Let's not upset him too much, please."

"All right, we'll leave him for now. Should we call Leia?"

"I don't see why not."

The princess was summoned to their presence.

She appeared, pretty as she always was, but quiet and nervous. Not like her at all.

Anakin was beginning to really believe what his wife told him the night before.

"Are you all right, Leia?" he said, sounding sincere and he was.

She took some time to answer.

"I'm fine."

She sat and had her breakfast with her parents.

The meal passed by in mostly silence.

When she finished, she was about to leave them, but at last she summoned all her courage and said. "Luke's gone."

When she gave them the time to assimilate that piece of information, she simply repeated, "Luke's gone."


	8. Finding Luke

We will leave Padmé and Anakin for a little bit to focus on their kids.

Chapter VIII: Finding Luke

Padmé was alone in her bedroom, inconsolably crying, Anakin couldn't stand to see her like that, so he decided to wait outside, though he must certainly wished he had the ability of comforting his wife and make her feel better. But there was only one thing that could accomplish that: giving her her son back.

He was sure he could do that. Bringing back his son. There's no way Luke could hide from him, no one ever hid from Darth Vader—well, except for one damn person—but no matter what, Luke will be back and he would have to explain a great many things.

But, how far could he have gone already?

What if it takes him months to find him? Leaving Padmé alone again seemed like the most impossible thing to do. It didn't seem like an option, at all.

Could Anakin really risk leaving Padmé alone in a time like this?

No, he couldn't and he wouldn't.

But sending his troops or bounty hunters after him didn't appear too great a choice, either. Making Luke a fugitive would only make matters worse, and it could hurt the reputation of the royal family, even further.

So who was qualified enough to go after a powerful Sith lord?

Why, of course, a Sith lady!

Leia had never failed his father in all her nineteen years and she certainly wouldn't start now.

So, it was decided, princess Leia would go after her brother and bring him back home, safely to Naboo.

Padmé even thought it was a good idea, since Luke would definitely listen to his twin sister. Though she insisted she couldn't go alone—which Vader found ridiculous, but he complied—so a number of stormtroopers accompanied her on her mission, as well as an old friend who had made Padmé's life easier in the past.

At first it was suggested that R2D2, Anakin's favorite droid still, would be the best droid to join her, but he had disappeared with Luke, which actually made the family breathe easier since that meant Luke wasn't alone; so C3PO was assigned on the mission to take care of Leia.

C3PO had been given as a gift to Padmé's sister Sola and her little girls, ever since Padmé realized how much 3PO feared his maker and master; but since Luke and Leia often visited Padmé's family, the protocol droid had come to truly love the twins, though that doesn't mean he was happy to accompany princess Leia on her mission. 3PO hated space travel—not like he'd ever admit that to Vader.

* * *

Princess Leia didn't mind to travel, at all, she was more than used to it by now. So while she observed her talkative companion tremble in fear, she couldn't help but to smile, being forced to put her small, white hands on her pink lips to prevent her laugh from coming and hurting the old family droid's feelings.

"You all right, Threepio?" she asked, smiling softly.

"Oh, I have to admit I've been better, your majesty," he admitted and trembled a little more.

"You have nothing to worry about, you know. You're in the safest ship in the galaxy. You don't think my father would put me in space travel without taking every possible prevention, right?"

"Oh, I would never suggest such a thing from master Anakin! Please don't tell him I said anything!"

"Don't worry, Threepio," she comforted him. "I'd never do that. I actually like you."

The droid laughed, nervously.

"Have you any idea of where Master Luke could have gone?" he asked, later.

"Not the slightest."

"And do you know if poor little Artoo is with him?"

"I bet he is."

"Oh, I hope they're all right."

"Don't worry. They can both take care of themselves."

"Master Luke can, of course. But Artoo can be quiet clumsy, if I might say so."

She laughed. "You may."

"I could tell you stories about him for years, my lady. I've known him for a long time. I might even say I miss him."

Leia smiled at the droid, assuring him that he could speak freely, though she quickly came to regret that, since the droid indeed had stories for years.

They searched the planets that Luke was most likely sure to like. She tried to find him through the force, but he had a Sith, a dark force power that he had mastered long ago—the ability of disguising yourself through the force. Anakin learned that from Palpatine, who managed to fool an entire Jedi order about his true colors, then Vader taught that to his children, while he never imagined one of them would ever use that power against him.

The search seemed endless and poor C3PO was getting sick of it. While Leia never lost her faith. She knew her brother wanted her, somehow she knew, but then why didn't he call her through the Force? An image, a place, a word. Anything would do. Uncertainty wasn't very pleasant.

* * *

One time while she was eating, the droid did something that annoyed her—he let go of a piece of information that she didn't want to know.

Leia almost choked on her food, while C3PO couldn't realize how important his words were.

It came from the fact that a lot of his stories about R2D2—all of his stories—involved the Jedi. And Leia had been raised to hate them, as one would hate the Sith during the times of the old Republic.

Since the little she knew about the Republic came from her father—an unreliable source, one might say—and she was curious to hear what someone who lived outside of the Skywalker Empire could say of the republic, she asked him many questions.

"When did you meet my mother?" she asked.

"Oh, it was shortly after mistress Shmii was taken. Then master Anakin returned, and he brought your mother with him. She was as lovely as you are today."

"Were they already married?"

"No. They married after some awful battle in an awful planet which I don't even want to recall."

"You were in a battle?" she was surprised.

"Oh, yes. I was there and I helped the Jedi and Clones."

"Threepio? You… the Jedi, you say?"

"Yes, there I was, and oh little Artoo, too. And your parents and master Kenobi."

"Kenobi?" that name didn't ring a bell, at all. "Who's that?"

"Your father's master."

She blinked in disbelief. Vader's master was named Sidious.

"You must be mistaken. I've never heard father mention any Kenobi."

"Really? How strange! I know the Jedi aren't very much admired nowadays—but they were such close friends…"

"Kenobi…" she repeated.

"Yes, Obi-Wan Kenobi. He often visited your mother, too."

"What happened to him?"

"Lord knows! He was must likely killed during… that day."

"What day? The First Empire day?"

The droid nodded.

Leia took time to take in all that new information.

"Who's Shmii?" the droid looked appalled.

"Why, can you possibly not know? Your grandmother, who was sadly taken from us too soon."

"Oh, how come I never heard of her?"

"I couldn't know, princess."

"Hmm…" Leia wandered off for a while. "Did my father love her?"

"He did, it was really hard for him to leave her as a slave when he joined the Jedi…"

"What? What did you just say? My grandmother was a slave? And my father knew?"

"Your father was a slave, as well," 3PO said, unaware of how insensitive he was being; he was simply stating a fact.

Leia thought about it for a long time.

It was hard to think of the powerful Sith lord, ruler of the galaxy, as a slave—it didn't make sense.

"Why did he leave her when he joined the Jedi? Why couldn't he take his own mother and save her?"

"Oh, I can't say for sure. It probably had something to do with the fact that Jedi couldn't form any attachment. It was forbidden. That's why they never could form a family. Which is why your parents' marriage was kept a secret. I was one of the few who knew."

"What did the Jedi do when they found out?"

3PO considered an answer that wouldn't get him into trouble. "They never did."

"Were you happy in the Old Republic?"

"Oh, yes! It was very exciting since your mother was then a senator. She was very important and I was of great use to her. It's been a long time since I was of use to someone. I mean, of important use."

"But, life is better in the Empire, isn't?"

The droid waited long enough to answer, long enough to plant a seed of distrust in the princess's head. "Of course. Though I do miss little Artoo."

"Threepio, what place was that?" princess Leia asked long time after.

"Beg your pardon? Place?"

"The place in which my father built you. Where he and his mother were…slaves."

The droid went through his memory and informed, "Tatooine, your majesty."

"Tatooine…" she accepted.

She stood up and left her friend without another word—he thought her poor manners came from Anakin, Amidala's had always been too polished.

"When are we going to land on a planet?" 3PO asked the princess.

"Soon, Threepio, very soon…"

The princess and the droid allowed themselves to enjoy the quiet comfort of space. Their room was cold but quite luxurious. The chairs in which they were sitting had warm fur, and while the princess had a warm beverage in her hand, the droid had just been given an oil shower. 3PO forgot for a second that there was no actual floor supporting him, he forgot he was floating in the dangerous outer space. For a second he could imagine he was in Sola's living room, and princess Leia had simply come for a visit. It was hard to remember they were actually on a mission and that master Luke was missing.

Though the constant coming and going of the stormtroopers worried him a bit, he could ignore the uniforms and pretend they weren't there. Pretend…pretend… that was so easy to do. How he liked the moment until… did that really happen or was it just his nerves?

No, it really happened because princess Leia had thrown her drink away and she had gone to a stormtrooper asking him what was happening, and, he couldn't have heard that wrong—the ship was under attack!

"By whom?" the princess asked.

"It appears we've gotten caught in a fight between imperials and rebels."

The ship's captain appeared, and he looked angry.

"What are we doing in the Outer Rim? Who in the world set course to a war zone?"

"Princess Leia ordered us to set course to Tatooine, sir."

"Oh, well…" the captain was incapable of saying anything else.

"Captain," princess Leia asked him, completely shocked. "Did you say 'war zone'?"

He pretended he couldn't hear.

"Come now," he ordered. "We must defend our ship. Our princess is here and we can't let them do so much as to scratch the ship. Kill that rebel scum!"

"Oh no!" 3PO sighed and he ran to the princess.

"What's going on? What must we do?" he asked to his mistress.

"I have no idea," she said.

The ship was shaken savagely and C3PO fell on top of the princess, he heard the battle and remembered with fright all those crazy situations Padmé used to get him into, he never imagined the princess would put his life in danger, too.

Explosions made him reminisce the war.

Then, he heard. He couldn't be mistaken. Their engines were destroyed.

The fall was going to be nasty, he could tell.

"Oh, no, no, no!" he cried as he supported himself on the princess.

The imperial ship managed to make into land safely. Though they weren't sure to survive what follow.

The sound of blasters actually took him two decades prior.

Then he heard Leia saying, "Come with me!"

And he couldn't do anything but follow her.

Then he thought his end had come. When he saw the blasters coming his way—but, wait! Princess Leia had a lightsaber! Sure, the color wasn't very pretty, that violent red, but she could dodge the fire as well as a Jedi.

And many stormtroopers got in the way to protect her, giving their lives for her, turning themselves into human shields.

And then he felt the hot sand under his feet.

"We need to get out of here!" she cried.

Leia didn't understand what was going on. Why were those people trying to kill her? She could deflect the blasters with her lightsaber no problem, but why? Could there really be a war going on? No, a person of importance like her couldn't possibly be so misinformed.

She saw the people falling dead on both sides, and fear, real and poignant like she never experienced before, attacked her. When she could recover from the surprise, she remember who she was, and she just knew, she wasn't going to leave those worthy soldiers to be brutally murdered, though they had already motioned her to escape. Escape? Princess Leia? Unlikely. And stormtroopers had been with her all her life, protecting her and her family's empire, she couldn't just abandon them, they were loyal and good, but not as powerful as she, she had to do something more than defending herself, she had to interfere.

The whole squadron of rebels was killed.

Vader's old Sith master would've exploded with pleasure had he been able of witnessing such a bloodbath, the spectacle was worthy of being compared to even that of the young Jedi who betrayed the order that night the temple was raided. For she showed no mercy. She thought there was nothing that could hold her back while protecting innocent people. Still half the crew was killed and the ship was destroyed.

Princess Leia, C3PO, and like twelve stormtroopers were left stranded on that hot desert planet.


	9. Tatooine

Chapter IX: Tatooine

"Well, that's a lot of sand…" princess Leia said as she stared at the landscape in front of her.

"Yes, your majesty," 3PO sounded annoyed. "Exactly how I remember it."

"Well, cheer up. At least I brought you to your home planet."

They droid assumed she was trying to relieve the tension.

"Your majesty," a stormtrooper said. "The ship has been too damaged and we have no one to repair it. We must find an engineer. We will contact Coruscant immediately to report what has transpired here. They will send another ship for you to continue your search. In the meantime, forgive me, you must stay in this forsaken planet. We will find you some place to stay."

"That's okay," she said. "You guys just focus on getting another ship and informing my father. Threepio and I will find somewhere to rest."

"Yes, your majesty," he accepted.

"Oh!" 3PO sighed.

They walked through the desert for a very long time, yet there didn't appear to be any living creature in sight. Just an endless sea of sand. Yellow and bright, she didn't like it much.

"Can I ask something, princess?" 3PO tried to sound as respectful as he could.

"Sure," she said.

"Why did you set course to Tatooine?"

"For one thing, I've never been here before."

Yes, no one who ever visited that place could wish to return to it.

"And… I don't know. I thought Luke might come here."

"Why would you think that?"

"I don't know—I mean is father's home planet, and… here lies our grandmother. Could you maybe take me there?"

"To her grave? Well, we probably don't have the time."

She looked around and felt that the world stood still.

"I think that's the only thing we have right now."

At last, they came into contact with other people. At last, Tatooine seemed like an actual planet, with life, not just a lonely piece of desert. There were floating cars, traffic, loud voices, alien life of almost every life form she knew, tall lizards in the middle of all; there were foreign languages coming from every corner, too. She then wished she would've gone out of Naboo and Coruscant more, for she felt very ignorant at being so amazed by everything. 3PO didn't shared that sense of wonder, he looked more pissed off than Leia ever saw him.

A bunch of Jawas came near them and 3PO exclaimed, "Oh, now I know we've entered Mos Eisley for sure. How I hate those disgusting creatures!"

"Calm down Threepio. They aren't doing anything to you. This town is actually kind of charming."

"Charming?" princess Leia speaks as if she wasn't used to the gorgeous green fields of Naboo.

"Look at that place," the princess said as she pointed to a cantina. "Should we enter it? I could so drink anything refreshing, right now. These suns are really burning me."

The droid looked appalled, but is not like he could disobey Vader's daughter.

But as they tried to enter, a voice, rude and ugly, cried. "We don't serve your kind!" referring to the droid.

Leia looked at him infuriated.

"Who do you think you are to speak to us like that?"

"Quiet, child, this isn't about you. Just let your droid outside."

"I should not do anything like that! And you, apologize to him, right now!"

The man exploded with laughter.

"Yeah, right! Listen sweetheart, if you're not gonna consume, stop wasting my time. Beat it!"

She had never been spoken to thus, in her life. Quick anger and indignation showed in her haughty face.

"You will come to regret your insolence. I am princess Leia of the Galactic Empire. You will apologize to my friend and serve me something cold to drink, right now," she spoke now easily, with the confidence her title gave her.

Little did she know that being from the royal family was like a death sentence in poor systems. Luckily, he didn't believe her, and instead, laughed more.

"Princess, you don't have to worry about me. I don't even want to go inside, just have your drink fast, if you please, and then we can return to see if the stormtroopers have managed to fix the ship, or if master Anakin has sent one."

"All right, Threepio, only because I'm so thirsty. And this guy isn't worth me getting angry."

"Pair of loons!" the man cried, and princess Leia entered the place.

Almost as soon as she set foot on the cantina she regretted it. For one thing, she was the only female, and one of the few humans. No one there looked like they had one bit of decency or decorum. And they all stared at her. Was she looking dirty? Not very put together? Why were they all staring?

She walked and sat and tried to look confident. They poured her a questionable drink, and she figured that in the end it was better to not take it.

A strange short green guy stood next to her, speaking in a language that she didn't understand, though his body language made her a little nervous.

"I'm sorry," she said, respectfully, "I don't speak your language. And my protocol droid wasn't allowed to enter."

He went on blabbing which bothered her to some degree.

"I already said, I can't understand you."

Some other guy appeared and he translated:

"He's asking you why you are here."

"That's really not of his business," Leia said.

"You look like you're rich, he thinks," the translator went on.

"Well, he isn't wrong. I am also very powerful so you must just leave me alone."

"Now here!"

The two tried to put their hands on the princess, and before they could realize what was happening, she quickly ignited her lightsaber and cut the dirty hand of the translator, who had actually managed to touch her.

"I said leave me alone!" she cried.

There was silence, and for a moment, all eyes were on her again. Then, the band continued to play and the people went back to mind their own business; the green guy also left her alone.

The little energy she spent in teaching those guys a lesson made her thirstier, so she let go of her worries and drank a few drinks. After a while she heard the sound of a blaster and a body that had been blown, she saw that it was the little green guy who had bothered her before, "Well, save me the trouble of doing that!" she thought, smiling by herself. She then thought it was time to go, 3PO must be growing desperate.

"Thanks for the drinks," she said to the bartender.

"Where do you think you're going?" the man asked her, sharply.

"Um… out of here? I already said thanks."

"To Hell with your pleasantries. You must pay for what you drank!"

"Pay?" she looked confused. Since when did princesses pay?

"You don't understand. I am princess Leia."

"Yeah, me too, child. Pay me with credits or your pretty little head!"

She was taken aback.

"I'm sorry, I don't have any money."

The man looked like he was ready to cut her into pieces.

"Come on, man" a voice said behind her, "Can a girl as pretty as that be charged?"

"Solo! You stay out of this!"

The newcomer was now standing next to her, going through her entire figure in a slow glance that made her angry, indignant, and a little ashamed.

"Now what is the problem here? Short on cash, are we, sweetheart?" he said, resting his elbow on her shoulder. For a moment, she considered taking out her lightsaber and cut his damn head.

"Don't touch me, you—jerk! And don't talk to me that way. I am princess Leia, daughter of queen Amidala and lord Vader! So if you value your life even a little, you will both leave me alone, and let me go on my way."

The man laughed nastily and for a long time.

"Oh, I am sorry 'princess'. Fall out of your castle, did you?"

The whole room was now laughing, disgustingly.

None of them could believe a member of the royal family would degrade so much by going to that far off, forgotten planet which didn't even recognize the empire (Anakin didn't care to get that planet which only brought bitter memories), even more so to that dirty Mos Eisley cantina, filled with the lowest the galaxy had to offer.

A few bounty hunters raised their heads to look at her, but even they couldn't believe a princess would be there in that place with them, especially alone.

They thought she was just some crazy, drunk fool, and didn't give her much importance.

Only that smug looking human man seemed to be interested in her. He really couldn't keep his eyes from her, which aggravated her anger.

Leia just wanted to get out of that place, but the bartender wasn't letting her, and she didn't want to hurt another person that day. She tried to be diplomatic about it and promised to come back later with money, but the man didn't trust her to do that, the stranger then tried to interfere.

"Say, man. How much did the lady had to drink? Well, that's not so much. I'll pay for her."

"No, I don't need your help! Sir, I promise I will come back and pay you even double of what I spent…"

"Shut up or you're gonna end up kidnapped or something worse," the man called Solo whispered at her ear, very softly. Leia was left frozen, the bill was paid and she was escorted outside.

"Now," he said when they were outside. "I've seen people pull all kinds of crazy things to get out of paying for stuff—more so alcohol—but you really impressed me there. That was some convincing acting!"

"I wasn't acting, you fool! I am really Leia of Naboo."

"Whatever you say, my dear. You know, if you want another free drink, I have my ship full of good stuff. Wanna join me?"

It is hard to say whether the red color on her cheeks came from anger or embarrassment. But since he found the red of her face all too amusing, she showed him another that was sure to erase that annoying, smug look from his face. Her lightsaber. She pointed the weapon at his neck, and said, arrogantly, "This is your last warning, you either leave me alone, or I leave you in pieces. Which do you prefer?"

For a second he turned white, and she noticed his body trembled, but soon enough the confident look came back, and with a relaxed voice he said, "Easy, honey, I was only trying to be nice."

"Well, now you know you have to pick your words better."

"Certainly. You could've say you were a Jedi before…"

As soon as he spoke she slapped him. She had to put away her lightsaber, fearing that at some point he'll make her kill a person for what seemed like the hundred time that day.

"I am not a Jedi! I am a Sith, you ignorant fool!"

"Right… right! Sorry! I've never been too good with religion. Didn't mean to disrespect your beliefs."

"I should slice you in two right now! I doubt anyone would even miss you!"

"There's where you're wrong. A lot of people would be very angry if you kill me. That is, if you kill me before I pay my debts. On the other hand… you might make Jabba very angry if you kill me right now, and though I would miss the look on his face… you could be making me a favor."

She was starting to lose interest in what he was saying. She looked at him with disregard and started searching for 3PO.

She saw him and called to him, he was hiding from the Jawas from before.

"Oh, finally, your majesty! I was beginning to think something happened to you."

"I'm fine… well, as fine as I can be in this stupid place. Come on, Threepio, let's get out of here."

"Wait, 'your majesty'." The man dared to speak to her again. "I should warn you. It's about to get dark, and it gets really dangerous here."

"Do you honestly think there's a person in this planet who could get the best of me?"

"I'm not doubting your abilities. But a person is not what I mean. The Sand People are known to be of trouble for even Jed… for most people."

"Thanks for your concern, but I'm not afraid of no Sand People. I've never been afraid of anyone, so just take your fake concern, and disappear with it. Goodbye."

"Wait! Just one thing. Since we might never see each other again, what's your name?"

"I already said it like a million times, I think. I am princess Leia."

"Leia, that's pretty."

"Princess—don't forget—"

"Right… right. Your lovely title. Princess," he smiled wickedly. "I'm Han Solo. Captain of the Millennium Falcon, if you ever need a ride back to your castle…" he said with a tone that was very insinuating. Could he have to courage to mock her even after she almost killed him? "I will be hanging at that Mos Eisley cantina."

"Whatever," Leia dismissed him and tried to erase his memory from her head.

She and C3PO decided to return to the place where their ship had fallen.

Han Solo watched her walk away with a strange smile on his face.


	10. Han and Leia

**I apologize for my previous misspelling of Tatooine.**

 **I hope that didn't bother you guys too much! Anyway… let's hope I don't mess things up too much this time.**

Chapter X: Han and Leia

Princess Leia and C3PO walked back to the ship, hoping that during their absence their troubles had been fixed.

When they were finally there, they saw something that could at last scare the brave princess.

When they left, the ship needed some repairs, and there were a few stormtroopers who had stayed to guard it, while others left to inform Vader of what happened. Now, the ship had been stripped of almost all of its metal, and a lot of pieces were missing. Two or three dead bodies let them know that they were now truly alone.

"Who do you think did it, Threepio?" princess Leia asked, sounding surprisingly calm, yet there were tears in her eyes.

The droid was too afraid to even answer.

"Rebels? Or just some random criminal? It's hard to say in this planet."

"My lady, what are we to do?"

She breathed loudly, and swiftly, again and again. "Let me think," though that was the last thing she wanted to do. "I don't know. We're—lost."

"Oh, no!" 3PO moaned.

"You know what? I need to rest. I just can't—this day has been long enough. And I'm deactivating you—trust me, it will be better that way. I wish I could do that to myself."

And now truly alone, she cried and then fell asleep.

* * *

When morning came she couldn't believe no stormtrooper had come back. That meant, of course—that they were killed, as well. She was lucky no one assaulted her in her sleep. She also let the droid alone, she wanted to activate him only after she already had a plan, because his complaints were definitely not going to help her. She figured that if the Empire had learned of her situation, the place of crashing is where they would look. So, for the moment, she decided to not move from there.

Great lord Vader, was that place hot!

The day before she thought of it as warm, but now it was definitely unbearable; Tatooine's twin suns were too much for her delicate skin. Especially after so many months spent in space, where it was so cold and dark. Here the day was bright, quiet, and so lonely.

She got more and more worried. What if she was left in that planet forever? What if they never find her? What if they assume that she disappeared like her brother? Oh, no, she must push the thought away! But she has to think of something. She needs a ship, she needs a pilot—and she knows one. That guy… that Han Solo. But, no. She would rather die dehydrated than asking him for help and see him again.

She then wished desperately that one of her father's teachings had been patience. She had no patience. She needed things in the moment, whether they were handed to her or she took them with force.

"Patience! Father, why didn't you teach me that before anything else! I will go crazy in this planet!"

And, oh, why didn't anyone believe she was the princess!

She had never landed on a planet where people didn't know her, where people didn't bow to her and give her presents and compliments.

This planet was too rough, the people too coarse, and the heat too much.

Leia looked at C3PO, his face off, she didn't like to see him quiet. Strange that everyone always complained about how much he talked, she didn't mind it that much. But she wouldn't activate him right now, let him be at peace, she thought, I would only drive him as desperate and crazy as I am.

After such an exhausting morning she could only wish for the night to come already, cool and with the darkness to give her a chance of resting, asleep, at peace.

But with sleep sometimes come dreams, well, not with her, actually. She very seldom had dreams and when she did she could never remember what they were. This one she would remember. This was a strange one. Because it went from vivid to blurry.

Finally she was out of Tatooine.

But, this new planet wasn't that much better, to be honest. It wasn't so hot and bright, but it was dark and so very gloomy. Green vines hanged all around, a weird lake of water almost black was next to them. And the foggy mist almost blinded them, yet Luke didn't seem uncomfortable, he seemed calmer than she ever saw him before. She remembered her twin brother as powerful and kind, but melancholic, unsatisfied and unsure. This Luke didn't have any of that—except for power. Strange that in a dream she could feel his power, and his emotions, how could she even feel them? And she felt them so in control, to the point that they almost didn't seem like emotions. And he had no anger, no fear, he was too calm and collected. "I've been waiting for you," Luke said. "I told them you would come. It was hard to contact you Leia. Without letting you know where I was, but now, I am ready. Come Leia, you must be trained. You must learn the ways of the force. And you must truly get to know the light side."

"The light?" she was confused.

"I will guide you, my dear," a man she didn't know said.

"Ready, she is," some small alien said.

She suddenly could see herself with them. And she looked and felt more conflicted than the three of them combined.

And then… she heard a name.

Luke called his master, he called him… master Kenobi. Where had she heard that name before?

"Ah!" she cried, back in Tatooine.

A sandstorm had come. It was not as bad as many, but still it frightened her. She took the little droid and hid him with her in what remained of the ship.

"I must get out of here!" she cried. "I must escape this planet before I lose my mind!"

She activated C3PO and told him that they were still alone, all the stormtroopers had disappeared, and they hadn't a ship. "But don't worry." She said, confident again, "I know a pilot, and he will get us out of here."

The droid was unsure of whether the heat had affected the princess' head or not. But he complied, and once the sandstorm was over, on they went to the Mos Eisley cantina, praying that that annoying jerk from before would be there.

"Well, you know I cannot enter," the droid said, when they were in front of the cantina.

"I don't know if they'll even let ME inside again. Wish me luck, Threepio."

"Good luck," he watched her go inside with worry.

Like the day before, all eyes landed on her lovely figure. But no matter, she walked unafraid, and asked for a man called Han Solo. A bunch of drunk guys laughed when they heard her.

"How does that low-life manage to get these young girls?" one of the drunks cried.

She tried to not lose her temper and ignore the stupid comment, but she wished she could kill everyone in sight till she found the damn pilot.

"I am here, sweetheart," and Han Solo appeared.

When she saw that smug face of a man again, she deeply regretted her decision. After all, maybe dying alone and stranded in a desert wasn't as bad as dealing with the captain of the Millennium Falcon.

"I need to talk to you," she said as haughty as she could.

"Come to my table, then," and his smile shamed her to no end.

"Chewie, leave us," he said to his companion, a tall, intimidating Wookiee.

"That won't be necessary, we don't have to be alone for what I am about to ask you."

"Have you no shame, Leia?" and he laughed, Leia thought, too loud and nastily.

"Princess…!"

"Right, sorry. So, what do you want, your Highness?"

"You don't have to call me that. I need to get out of this planet."

"I see. So it's not me what you want, but my ship?"

"Exactly."

"Well, we'll see. Where do you want to go?"

"Coruscant. I just need to get to the capital to get me my own ship."

"Well, that sounds like an easy enough mission. Just for one thing. We would be at the mercy of the Empire. And since it would be a business trip, strictly, I will have to be paid quite a lot."

"You have nothing to worry about. How much do you want?"

"How much can you offer?"

"As much as you want."

Han considered it for a moment.

"What do you think, Chewie?"

The Wookiee yelled, hurting Leia's ears.

"I think so too. Ten thousand, darling. Now what do you say? If you treat me kinder, I'll leave it at five."

The Wookiee nagged him.

"Shut up, Chewie. What do you say, sweetheart?"

"I will give you 20 thousand if you don't speak to me during the trip."

"All right. That sounds fair. Especially since I might get into trouble with the empire."

"You will not, I tell you. Though no one here believes me. I am princess Leia. How do you think I have the money to hire you?"

He looked at his partner and back at her, finally starting to take the girl seriously.

"Are you really a princess?" he sounded very surprised, and curious. "You're not crazy… are you…?"

"I tell you I am princess Leia!"

"Lower your voice! Boy, we really should've asked for more money, Chewie!"

"You will take me, then?"

"Yes. Of course, your Worship."

"Do not call me that!"

"Sorry, princess. Come, let's get out of here."

"Not so fast!" a strange, robotic voice cried.

And a strange figure came between the princess and Han Solo.

"Oh no…" Han muttered lowly, to himself. "Hello Boba."

"Who's this?" Leia asked.

This bounty hunter had been recently hired to take Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt. Han was aware of the fact, yet he acted as casual as ever, smiling comfortably. Leia could sense his fear, though, and she examined the newcomer almost as much as he examined her. Fett was more than familiar with the princess' image, though they had never met.

"Hello, your majesty," Boba Fett said.

"You know the princess?" Han's voice didn't falter. "Of course you do. You're always so well informed."

"I don't think the emperor would like to know his daughter's been with you," Boba said.

The whole air of the bounty hunter appeared very odd to the princess.

"Let's hope he never finds out," Solo was nervous yet his demeanor didn't change.

"Jabba sent me for you."

"I figured, but it's not necessary. The princess here owes me some money. And I will use that to pay Jabba, you can go tell him that."

"You can tell him yourself," Boba Fett said grimly. "I will take you with him now."

"I really hate to disagree with you, but first I have to deliver this lovely girl. I'll see you around. Give Jabba my regards, good bye!"

Boba pulled out his blaster and he would've seriously wounded the smuggler, were not for the fact that princess Leia knew what was going to happen beforehand. Han saw how behind his armor, the bounty hunter appeared to have trouble breathing, then he turned to see the princess and she had raised her hand; when Boba Fett was laying on the floor unconscious, Leia lowered her hand. What she had done Han didn't know, but he didn't care, he was quite impressed, and he and the princess quickly escaped the cantina.

"Wait," Leia cried as Han had a hold of her arm, and they were moving fast. "My droid! Threepio!"

The droid saw them and ran to them.

"Hurry, you piece of junk! Chewie, get the ship ready!"

* * *

Outside of the Millennium Falcon, princess Leia regarded the Tatooine sand for one last time.

"Are you all right, princess?" C3PO asked.

"I thought that maybe we could've gone to my grandmother's grave," princess Leia said, sadly.

"Well, maybe captain Solo would allow us a few moments…"

"No, I don't want to ask him too many favors," and she didn't want him to see her cry.

"Well, let's go inside then."

"You go, Threepio. Give me a second."

"All right, princess."

The sunset was now at its point.

Tatooine's twin suns reflected their glow on the princess' doubtful face, as she stared at the horizon. She felt very strange, as if she were a different person than the one who first left Naboo on a search for Luke Skywalker. She thought of her own twin brother, and wondered, more strongly than ever, where he could be and with who. She wondered also the reason for his escape. She was so into her ruminations, that she didn't notice somebody was watching her.

Han had gone out to call her, ready with some sharp comment that was sure to annoy her. But as he saw her, he froze, staring dumbfounded at her soft beauty.

As the two suns were getting ready to hide and welcome the dark night, most people would've said that there wasn't anything more beautiful, more enchanting than that natural phenomenon, but to Han Solo, there appeared to never been a more magical sight than that young girl's face. He could've stayed there, watching the princess in silence forever, but at last, Chewbacca came, calling the two missing passengers.

Neither Leia nor Han had any words to say, they looked at each other for a short second, and entered the ship, and they didn't spoke at all that night.

Before going to sleep, Leia couldn't help but to think: "Was he… watching me?"

But she had no time to waste her thoughts on Han Solo, she needed to focus to find her lost brother.


	11. Dreams

Chapter XI: Dreams

The last few months had strangely been some of the happiest in a really long time for Padmé and Anakin; though there wasn't a day Padmé didn't feel uneasy while thinking of her children, Anakin had too much confidence on his twins to even think something could happen to them, and he always told Padmé, "They're too powerful, my love. And Leia is being taken care of. While Luke's just being a rebellious teenager. I'm sure is just a phase. He'll grow out of it."

"I don't know, Anakin. You didn't see him those last few months he was here. This is my fault actually. I should've known. He was looking so strange, and I didn't do anything."

"Don't trouble yourself about it. Besides, soon that won't matter. When Leia brings him back."

"Maybe you're right…"

* * *

Naboo's morning looked beautiful from queen Amidala's balcony. She sat there with her husband behind her, and they just stayed there in peace, mostly in silence. At that moment they felt like a normal couple, one who's been together for many years, who knows the other person better than they know themselves. And every kiss they shared was like heaven, immensely sweet and passionate.

It had been a long time since Padmé saw Vader, too. Which was probably the main reason of her joy. Anakin hadn't gone to Coruscant since Leia left, and he just managed business from their castle, while a lot of the empire's affairs were left in the hands of imperial officers.

"Aren't you hungry? Do you want to go down to have breakfast?" the emperor asked his wife.

"Yes, I am hungry. But, why don't we eat here on our room? That way we will also enjoy the view."

"As you wish," he said with a smile.

The day kept going uneventful for the couple, later Anakin enjoyed watching the queen on her garden as she picked up flowers to bring them inside.

But like always, they can't be left alone, and business was calling the emperor.

"That can wait," Anakin said and his wife smiled at him.

"My lord, it's apparently very important. The message came from the capital as an urgent matter."

Anakin had really neglected his work for quite some time.

"I tell you it will have to wait."

"You can go, Anakin," Padmé said. "We can see each other at dinner."

"No. It's probably something about the rebellion, and I don't want to worry about that now."

A sad cloud seemed to cover her happy features, it was still hard to accept they were under another war.

"I actually want to know about that. Do you mind if I join you?"

He also lost his smile. "Padmé, I don't want you to trouble your mind over anything, please let me handle it."

"All right, but if it's anything serious, you will tell me?"

"Of course. I could always use the advice of a shrewd politician."

He kissed her and went to his office, little did he know, someone was expecting him.

Someone he knew well and for a long time, and who he used for several missions throughout the years of the Skywalker Empire.

But he hadn't call him in a really long time, so what could Jango's son want now?

He asked.

"Lord Vader," Bobba Fett said. "I figured you would call me soon, so I arrived uninvited to save us time."

Anakin was confused. What was the man talking about?

Why must he come when the emperor has so much to catch up on?

Anakin went through the messages from Coruscant—so many things he didn't give a damn about.

He decided to wait for the bounty hunter to leave before watching the blue holograms, in the meantime, he could pretend to look busy while going through some papers.

Boba appeared unperturbed by the emperor's lack of interest. "You probably have people after them already" he said. "But I can assure you, I know that guy's ship, and I can find them faster."

Now what was he babbling about?

Well, he let him talk and he read the messages: The rebellion attacked several imperials, the war is intensifying and…

What!?

Princess Leia's ship…

Seriously, what!?

"The kidnapper's name is Han Solo," Bobba Fett went on, and if he noticed the change in Anakin's face as he read that piece of paper, he didn't seem to care.

 _Princess Leia's ship set course to the Outer Rim where a battle between imperials and rebels was taking place. The ship fell under attack, crashed into the planet Tatooine where the Empire is not recognized. The crew was murdered, there appeared to be no survivors…_

 _Message sent, two weeks ago._

Anakin looked as if he were ready to pass out, never had his face looked whiter before, and he would've spoken, he would've done something, if he had anything other than pain inside. There was not even room for anger…yet.

"I will go after him, sir. As soon as you tell me."

"What… what are you…" he couldn't form a sentence.

"I saw him take the princess, sir."

Suddenly Anakin's mind seem to cool.

"You saw the princess?"

"Yes, sir. In Mos Eisley."

"And she was well?"

"She looked fine. Well, as much as a person can in that planet."

"Was she alone?"

"Han Solo was there with his friend Chewbacca."

"Who are those people?"

"Smugglers. Han Solo owes money to the crime lord Jabba the Hutt, I heard Solo say that he was taking the princess out of Tatooine, and that he would get the money from her, to pay his debts."

"Tatooine…"

Now that the princess' life was ensured, he could think clearly, still it took him time to SPEAK clearly.

"You know the ship of that criminal?" he said, now fully Vader.

"Yes, sir. I was actually hired already by Jabba the Hutt to capture captain Solo. His ship is the Millennium Falcon, and is a damn fast machine, sir. Though I'm sure, I'll find them."

"If you do find him," Vader said, coldly. "Bring him to me, first. Alive. I will deal with him."

"Yes, sir."

"Go immediately."

"Yes, sir."

And after putting a price on the neck of that kidnapper, Vader dismissed the bounty hunter.

He sank into his chair and gave sigh after sigh. Now both of them were missing. But they were alive, and that was the most important thing. Of course, he wouldn't leave his daughter's fate in the hands of a bounty hunter, no matter how effective he had proven to be, so the next day, he would go himself on his ship—what he should've done long ago—and get both of his children.

He wanted to wait as much time as possible, so when he entered Padmé's bedroom, she wouldn't have to see Vader. But, man was it hard.

Now that everything was planned he couldn't help but to feel a desire for destroying everything in sight. The rebellion! He cried, that rebel scum almost cost him his daughter!

He had decided that they would be crushed long ago, but before he only thought of them as a fly on his coffee, something insignificant he could disregard. He couldn't do that anymore. Now, he would have to take them seriously.

They were more than a problem now, they were _his_ biggest problem, and he wouldn't show mercy—not that he had before.

* * *

At last, he entered Padmé's private rooms, and he saw her, she was still up. She had been waiting for him. Oh, bless her heart forever! She quickly moved to give him space next to her in the bed, and he did so, putting on a fake smile, but no matter how much he tried to disguise his emotions, Padmé could see right through him.

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

He simply couldn't tell her of what happened to Leia. That would destroy her and he couldn't stand to see her suffer, and since she soon would be found, what was the point of robbing her of her tranquility and sleep?

"It's that damn civil war," technically that wasn't a lie, since that also was worrying him. "More battles and more death every day, Padmé. I never thought I'd lived to see another war."

"It's getting serious. I am afraid it could reach us here in Naboo."

"I'd never let that happen."

"I know, but remember… remember when we thought Coruscant was untouchable—"

"Let's not think of those days," he said, tiredly. "I'll be going to the capital tomorrow to see what's going on, and how it is that the rebellion has gained so much strength. I will deal with that tomorrow."

"But, what if…"

"Tomorrow. Let's not think of anything at all. For now, please. I'm tired, darling. So very tired."

Her face showed sympathy and understanding. "Come here," she said, and he placed his head on her breast, finding comfort and happiness there. She stroked his hair lovingly, and got him to talk of only pleasant things.

"How amazing is she," Anakin thought. "She can always cure whatever wrong in my world."

"I love you," he said, taking her human hand and kissing it.

"I love you too," she said, putting her lips on his and falling asleep.

* * *

The Skywalker castle in Naboo slept soundly. On her room, the queen couldn't even dream of any danger that could come to her. She only feared for other people, she thought with guilt of how everyone in the galaxy was so much less fortunate than her.

She knew there was a civil war happening, she knew a rebellion had broken; there must've been a reason for those people to be so against the empire, but she was blind to see it.

There's no way she could ever imagine how hated she was outside of Naboo.

There was no way she could think herself in jeopardy.

It is always those who have their guards low, who are easier of attacking.

And the more unexpected the attack is, the more satisfying for those who rebel.

There were guards surrounding the castle, but not one of them could've prevent the rebels from raiding it; they walked in freely with their weapons, ready to smash Queen Amidala into a million pieces.

"Death to the Queen!" they were all chanting.

And when they reached her bedroom, she was all alone. Her husband had gone out, he was in some distant planet, yet he would sense her death, as strongly as if he were an inch from her, witnessing it.

The rebels showed as much mercy as Darth Vader ever did—so you know, no mercy at all.

Anakin's heart was beating like only once or twice before in his life. He was covered in sweat and he had a thousand bitter tears in his eyes. He got up and contemplated his wife, who was sleeping soundly, unaware of her future doom.

"No…!" Vader repeated in his troubled head, over and over again. "Not again!"

If he went to sleep he saw that same dream— ** _nightmare_** —and each time it was more vivid and detailed. He wouldn't ever sleep again after that.

In the morning, Padmé was getting ready to say goodbye to her husband, since she thought he was still leaving to deal with all the conflict, but he affirmed he wouldn't leave now. It was of no importance, he just couldn't leave her.

Oh, he thought bitterly, at least last time he knew how much time he had, to act (the nine months of pregnancy). But now? Oh, it could come at any time!


	12. Chased by a bounty hunter

Chapter XII: Chased by a bounty hunter

Han Solo had most definitely failed his word, since there was barely a time when he didn't speak to the haughty princess.

Even he was surprised to find so much pleasure out of annoying her, sometimes going too far with his teasing, causing the princess to raise her voice, only to look embarrassed for having lose her composure, swearing that she'll never speak to him again, only to fall for his next provocation and respond, never as sharply, always pleasing the ship's captain.

"You know you've already lost like half of what I promised?" she had discovered money was his weak point. With that, she could always torture him.

"Come on, your Majesty! I'm putting you back in a castle, if anything, I feel you should raise my reward."

"You could've gone out of this with your hands full, but you preferred to be a jerk and disrespect me."

"Disrespect? Why, we've hardly had enough time for that."

"Oh, shut up."

"Cheer up, princess. We're almost there."

"You know, after having talked so mighty about your ship, this piece of junk has surely taken its sweet, slow time."

"Slow? Piece of junk?" his face showed extreme displeasure. "No other ship in the Galaxy could've taken you to your Mighty Palace as fast and safely."

I know one… she thought sadly. Vader's.

"You're practically home, your Highness. I'm sure you're gonna miss me, but I beg you to save your tears because I can't deal with female weeping…"

Han turned his gaze towards the princess, burying his eyes on her, and he realized speaking was pointless, she wasn't listening to him, her mind was someplace else, far from that ship, and with someone, too.

"She sure wanders off a lot," Han said to Chewbacca.

"Your Highness," Han's voice was loud and careless. "You better come here, soon we'll be asked if we have permission to land on Coruscant, and you can prove at last whether you are the emperor's daughter or not."

She didn't hear him, her eyes were staring at nothing, and then, she pronounced a name Han hadn't hear before.

"Luke…" Leia murmured time and time again.

Han Solo stood up and took her elbow, shaking her mildly. The flame that appeared in her eyes would've frightened most people, but the smuggler shrugged and simply said, "We need you to confirm we have a member of the royal family aboard."

"Oh, right…"

" _Are you_ all right?"

She sighed strangely. "Fine."

Then a sound like the one she heard before landing—crashing—on Tatooine, invaded them.

They were under attack.

"Oh, wonderful!" Solo cried. "Chewie someone's after us!"

"If it's an imperial ship I can interfere—"

"Quiet, princess! Unless your daddy does deals with bounty hunters… I don't think the person following us works for the empire!"

It's that man! Leia could sense his strange presence again. Boba Fett…

The ship was shaking and like before, Leia's droid fell into her direction, asking her questions for what she had no answer. She couldn't possibly know if they would make it alive again, or if captain Solo was qualified for such a situation, so Leia wished for the first time with true anger, that she could take the droid and smash it into a million pieces. Some of that anger was plain on her face, and C-3PO tried to run from her, hurting her feelings to no end.

Han noticed her anger, too. But he thought that it was directed at him, and he couldn't look so bad in the eyes of the princess, so he had to fight.

But he couldn't do it alone, he and his friend could use all the help possible, and that princess, haughty as she was, had demonstrated strength above all, so now it would be a good opportunity for her to shine again.

"I am as mad as you are, having my ship fired at, sweetheart! But sulk a little less and give us a hand, would you!"

Of course she had to do something.

Last time, she only stared in shock as the imperial ship fell into the merciless hands of a group of rebels. In spite of being more powerful and capable than all of them combined, she let the stormtroopers defend her, at first. Then, she proved no one could threaten her. She could do that again.

She helped Han, who could still, after all, be amazed at her incredible will. Boba's ship suffered a lot more from the princess than it had in all the time Boba had owned it.

But the bounty hunter wasn't going to give up. She could tell. She sensed it. He was after her, not Han.

Now would be a good time as any to use the force, Leia thought.

"We gotta get out of here!" she cried.

"Don't worry. We will crash into Coruscant shortly!" Han cried.

"I hired you to take me there, safely. Now that can't happen. You think you can lose the bounty hunter?"

"The fact that you would question it offends me!"

"Then get us out of here!"

"He's still shooting at us!"

"Don't worry, I will see about that. You just worry about making the jump into hyperspace!"

Han went back to sit next to the Wookiee, leaving Leia to shoot Bobba Fett's ship. He thought he was crazy for doing so, but he preferred it that if anything went wrong, he could blame the princess—that is, if they did make it.

In his ship, Boba thought his reward was practically in his hands, after the Millennium Falcon crashes into Coruscant, he'll just capture the smuggler and take the princess—it shouldn't be so hard, once she learns her father sent him. But Solo's attack appears to be intensifying, to the point where Boba almost—almost, feels in danger.

Then the attacks ceased, and it almost looks like Solo had given up, one more shot and they'll crash… but, what was happening? He can't shoot them anymore! Was something wrong with his ship? It appears to, but it seems so unlikely… then he realizes. Leia has a power similar to Vader's...

If she would've wanted to, at that moment, she could've blown Boba's ship into oblivion. But she was only beginning to taste the dark side, and she could still, somewhat control her anger. She just kept the bounty hunter from shooting them, ensuring the Millennium Falcon's escape.

* * *

Once they were safe, Han and Chewie's cries of joy warmed the princess' heart; taking away all the anger she had used to stop Boba Fett. She could also celebrate with them, running to them, hugging the Wookiee, and in her excitement, kissing Han's cheek.

But there's hardly anything of romance with the two humans, the moment was more of bonding, it lacked passion, and it made them smile mockingly afterwards.

"You're welcome," Han said, after Leia released him from her arms.

"Yes. Thank you Chewbacca!" she said, putting a hand on the Wookiee, as he accepted the pleasantry with a cry of joy.

"What about me?" Han growled.

"What about you? It was mostly me and Chewie who did it."

"Chewie? You didn't even bother looking at him nor speak to him, and now we call him Chewie?"

"I made the mistake of putting him in the same category as you. Sorry, Chewie!" she said ironically.

The Wookiee laughed, and Han was tempted to hit his friend.

"That's enough laughing for now, don't you think?" Han was annoyed. "Don't worry, your Worshipfulness, we'll go back to Coruscant soon."

"No we won't," Leia lost the casual tone she had been using, to go back to that imperial countenance while looking at Han. To Chewbacca she was still friendly.

"What?" Han seemed confused.

"My lady," C3PO returned, looking still afraid of the princess. "What could you possibly mean by that?"

"We are not going back to Coruscant," Leia affirmed.

"Oh! Are we to go to Naboo, then?"

"No."

"Okay," Han intervened. "What crazy idea have you in your pretty little head?"

"I've decided another destination."

"Which is?" Han sounded impatient.

"I don't know yet."

"What? You don't know?"

"Yet."

"Listen, princess, we made a deal. You don't get to change it just because you feel like it. You offered me twenty thousand to take you and your silly droid to the Capital, and that's what I will do, okay?"

"Now, you listen to me. I've requested your services and I'm being gracious enough to pay you for them. In reality, I don't have to give you anything. I am Darth Vader's daughter, you should obey me on that fact alone. You will move this piece of junk you call a ship anywhere I say to. Understand?"

Han Solo had never felt so much indignation before. He wished for a second Leia was a man so he could show her how much he did understand. He was not used to taking orders, especially such vague and rude ones. If the princess at least modulated her voice of command… but no, she spoke to him as if he were her servant.

"What if I refuse?" Han snarled.

"You don't want to find out," Leia was very calm in appearance, but a little of that old flame almost came back to show in her eyes.

"Let's say I do."

"I will kill you."

The handsome smuggler looked unperturbed. He looked at her, straight into her eyes for a very long time. Chewbacca and C-3PO interchanged looks, too. They felt the long silence too uncomfortable.

"You wouldn't do it," Han said at last.

"I'm no stranger to murder," she admitted, hoping that would scare him.

"Neither am I, sweetheart. But that doesn't mean I would kill you, now does it?"

"I would do it."

"Oh yeah? Go ahead."

"Don't test me."

"That's exactly what I'm doing. Go on, I'll make it easier." He put his hands behind his back and placed himself in perfect shooting distance.

As if that would make a difference! Leia thought. She could easily kill him even if he tried to run or defend himself.

"Well? What are you waiting for?"

"Are you kidding me, Han?"

It was hard to tell. Since he never lost that mocking smile.

"Come on, your Highness! My hands are getting tired."

"Stop your stupid jokes. Just accept that you will do as I tell you."

"I will never do that. So you'll have to kill me now, to save you from any future nuisance."

"You underestimate me, if you think I won't do it."

"We're all waiting…"

The Wookiee in particular was beginning to look worried. He had started to warm up to the princess, but he'll definitely rip her apart should she choose to follow Han's stupid jests.

C-3PO was sure they were about to lose the ship's captain.

Leia pulled out her lightsaber, she ignited it hoping that would erase Han's smile, but to her surprise, his smile grew even wider. She got closer to him and placed the weapon an inch of distance from Han's neck; he didn't even flinch. "Would I actually have to do it?" Leia thought. "Oh well…"

But as she motioned her hand to finally put an end to that annoying jerk, her strength failed her. She just couldn't do it. Han's smile became unbearable laughter. She thought that instead of killing him, she could just force-choke him to put him in check, but that also appeared to be impossible. Truth was, she didn't want to hurt him. I mean she did, but at the same time not… ugh, what was happening to her?

"I knew it," Solo said triumphantly. He passed his eyes through the princess' entire figure, pleasure written all over him.

"What did you know?"

"You like me, don't you?"

"What? Just because I still need you to fly the ship…"

"Chewie could do that."

"Shut up."

"You've said it, princess. You need me."

"Yes, otherwise I'm stranded in the middle of nowhere!"

"You'd still have my co-pilot and your stupid droid. I suppose you actually need human contact."

"What are you even talking about?"

"I prefer we leave this conversation for later, when we're actually alone."

"We will never be alone together, captain Solo." A powerful red rose to her face. "If you're gonna be impossible to deal with… then… I-I will raise your reward," she looked bitter behind those sweet features.

"Now we're talking! Tell me, what exactly is your plan?"

And he would never admit it, but he was ready to do anything she command him to.


	13. Prince Luke Skywalker

**Little scene of Han Solo getting jealous.**

Chapter XIII: Prince Luke Skywalker

In the Millennium Falcon, princess Leia was sitting behind Chewbacca and Han Solo, next to her, her golden droid had already forgotten the fear the princess caused in him before, thinking that the Vader in her overcame the Amidala, but surely that wouldn't happen again…

"I'm sorry, but I don't know what planet you're talking about," Han said for the tenth time. "Are we even sure it's real?"

"I don't know," Leia said. "It felt real."

"It felt?" Han was shocked, what did that even mean? "Princess, have you ever even been in that place."

"No."

"But you've heard of it?"

"No."

"Then why the hell do you want to go there?"

She hesitated.

"Well," 3PO intervened. "I assume she wants to go on with her search."

"Search?"

"Yes. Princess Leia and I are on a mission to find Prince Luke Skywalker."

Han pretended he hadn't heard her say that name before.

"Who's that?"

"Why, of course none other than…"

"Threepio!" Leia interrupted. "He doesn't have to know everything!"

"Sorry!" Han's voice went from mocking to hurtful. "Didn't mean to get my nose into royal affairs. So, we're looking for a prince?"

Leia rolled her eyes, annoyed.

"No, Threepio and I are. You're only…"

"Doing all of the work. So that's why you changed course."

"Yes, which caused us to crash in Tatooine," C3PO couldn't keep his mouth shut again.

Leia felt like threatening the protocol droid, but she didn't want to scare him again.

A long silence invaded them.

"You know," Han said after a long time. "I always thought it was supposed to be the other way around."

"What?" Leia asked, grinding her teeth.

"I thought it was the prince who should be chasing after the princess!"

"I am not chasing anyone! You really shouldn't speak of what you know nothing about!"

"You're right. I don't know anything. So, tell me about him."

"Could you really not know who Luke Skywalker is?"

"Sorry, your Highness. I don't really follow politics. Tell me. Who is that prince?"

Leia recognized something in the ship's captain she had never seen before. It was more than just indignation or anger… it was—she couldn't be mistaken—it was jealousy!

She thought she could have fun with that, and man was she in need of some fun!

"Well," she begun, with a smile that tried to be mischievous, resulting somewhat seductive and sultry in the eyes of Han Solo. "He's very young. Educated. Polite and kind hearted. Qualities I sure miss while being stuck in space with you, captain."

She had tried and failed to erase his smile so many times, using violence or appearing menacing, if she had only known, this did the charm so effectively!

She went on and on about how wonderful Luke was and how much she had missed him since they parted, every word she uttered seemed to clung deeper into that former smug face of a man.

Not only did he look strange trying to form a smile that just didn't come. His voice grew hoarse and his whole look seemed too coarse. Strangely though, it was at that moment that princess Leia realized, for the first time, that he was quite good looking, very handsome—he was… beautiful. I mean is not like she thought him ugly before, but she had been so busy being annoyed by him, while worrying over how to get out of that desert planet, and then those strange dreams of Luke in some unknown planet, to even notice. His tall and manly demeanor, his careless gest, his broad shoulders; he really looked very strong and muscular… and his eyes, oh she could look at them forever, especially while they looked so troubled, and even hurt, by her, because he seems to—Leia can't ignore it—he seems to care.

Han had his gaze down, while Leia's head couldn't be higher.

"Have you known him long?" Han asked.

"All my life," she said, laughing.

"Oh," against all possibilities, Han had actually thought that there was a way that a princess and a guy like him could… well, he could forget about it. Of course she had a prince already—that was, if she found him… he could work to see about that… but no, that would be too low, and he still had his dignity, I guess. But if it takes them a long time to find the prince, perhaps Han could change her mind… but no! He doesn't want to—

"What'd you do to make him hide from you?" he asked sharply, hoping that that would annoy the princess, but Leia could obviously detect the jealousy that was corroding Han's soul. Leia was as unperturbed as Han when she had been on the point of ending his life.

"No one knows why Luke ran away. I hope to find out, I—I do hope I will find him," she was no longer speaking to upset Han, she was reminded of her _actual_ situation. Sadness was plain on her face as she thought of her long lost brother. It had been so long since she saw him, but she was still sure she would find him. She now knew where he was, she only needed to learn that planet's name—and location.

Han saw that sadness and mistook it for a heartbroken woman, and he actually had the tact to keep his harsh and mocking comments to himself.

It hurt him.

It hurt him to think Leia was in love.

He had grown to think her a sort of machine. Kind of like he heard the emperor was. Unfeeling, powerful and—he never denied it, Leia was beautiful.

But she had a heart, after all.

He had thought it quickly after she refused to kill him. He really thought she was warming up to him, maybe she was. But in her heart, there was no actual room to love a man. Not him. Not Han Solo.

Afraid that she would not only notice his jealousy, but pain, he left her for a moment.

Leia's heart raced as she thought with excitement how much power she had shown over Han, without using the force, without trying to be menacing, simply with words.

Her words impacted him more than her lightsaber ever did.


	14. Rebels

Chapter XIV: Rebels

Princess Leia was growing accustomed to the feeling of being persecuted.

That was unacceptable.

She was the princess of The Galactic Empire! How was it possible for Queen Amidala's daughter to have such feelings!

And as she felt her heart breath with ease again, she just couldn't avoid nor deny the quick anger that rose to her face and exploded in her heart.

The millennium Falcon had escaped the bounty hunter Boba Fett for a second time. Now, they were landing in some unknown place to the princess, and Solo. Apparently it was some moon.

"I hope you don't mind we take a break from our 'search'" Solo said with a hard grin.

"I don't care!" Leia cried, anger still controlling her.

Han looked at her and mistook her anger for fear. He felt responsible, and ignoring his jealousy, he decided to comfort her, or at least try to.

"Listen, princess, I am sorry you had to be dragged along the galaxy like this. Truth is, I know that guy isn't gonna give up soon. Actually, I know he isn't going to give up at all. I'm sorry, I really am."

She looked at him, deeply, trying to find some sarcasm or irony there. There was none. He was really in earnest. She couldn't help but to smile at him.

"Don't blame yourself, Han," she said and Han thought she had never sounded so sweet before. It was as if her voice and words finally matched her lovely face and appearance.

"But it is my fault—"

"No," she interrupted, but Han didn't mind. "He's not after you anymore. It's me."

"What?"

"He's hunting me. I felt it. And you're right, he's not going to give up."

Han Solo's face appeared more troubled than she had ever seen it. Then it cleared, showing true strength and courage.

"If that's true," Han said. "We're not gonna give up any time soon, either. Boba is gonna have to pass over my dead body before putting a finger on you…"

He stopped upon seeing Leia, whose face was absolutely immersed and fascinated.

"Why, Han? Why would you care so much about me?" she asked, her heart hanging like from a cliff. Hope and yearning plain on her sweet, young face.

The smuggler regarded her for some moments, he hesitated, and at last said, "My life depends on you, now, Leia."

Finally he called her by her actual name and not some mocking title. She waited for more words before giving him a full smile and embrace.

"Because, you see," he went on. "I'm kinda still counting on that money you owe me, princess!" the smugness returned to his dear face, the sarcasm shone in every one of his words.

Leia felt no anger at him at all, but she did experience extreme sadness and disappointment. Of course, she couldn't show it.

So to pretend indignation was her best option.

"Oh! You—you mercenary! You're so vile!"

"Calm down, Your Highness! We had made a deal. Do not forget it! Of course, you're gonna have to pay for all the damage Boba did to my ship, too. Since you've accepted it's all your fault."

She was unsure of how his smile made her feel. On the one hand, it filled her soul with joy and lifted her spirits, on the other… it put murderous thoughts in her head again. But, damn his charm that always won!

* * *

"Do you think we'll be much longer on this place, your Majesty?" C-3PO asked the princess.

"I don't know, Threepio. I doubt it. Han and Chewie said they wouldn't take too long."

"Yet they had been gone for quite some time. Almost an hour."

Leia sighed and the droid realized she wasn't on the mood to have a conversation.

Princess Leia and C-3PO had been left alone in the Millennium Falcon while the ship's captain and his co-pilot had left to explore the place they were in. They were hoping to find some people, maybe a town, and get some fuel. Leia had also asked for some food, for they were almost running out of it.

"Are you all right, princess?" 3PO asked.

She looked like she wasn't.

"Oh, no…!" she muttered.

"What is it?"

"He's in danger. He—needs help," she said, preoccupation obvious in her voice.

"He? You mean, Master Luke?"

Leia had gone out and left the droid speaking to himself.

"Oh, I am sure captain Solo and Chewbacca will come back soon, your Majesty. Do not worry, I am sure Master Luke…"

"Shut up!" she couldn't help saying. "It's not Luke."

"Well, then?"

"Han… he's in trouble and he needs me! We need to go after them!"

"Pardon me, my lady?"

"I can feel it. He is in danger and he's… he is thinking of me."

"Are you sure?"

"I am telling you! Now come—"

"What?"

"We're going after them."

"After who?" the droid asked, afraid.

"The rebels," she said with rancor.

* * *

The princess and the droid walked for some time through some dense, endless jungle. There was an eerie atmosphere covering them, and the droid was quick to point out how much of a bad idea it was for them to leave the security of the ship. Since she was too focused on finding Han and Chewie, he could speak freely without fear of the Sith within her. Leia let the Force guide her, and she knew, she would soon see Han again, and she was too certain, she would see him alive and well—maybe not perfect, though.

What they had in front of them was not the town Han had expected, it was a tall building, not very extraordinary; it was all right, Leia thought. It seemed like at some point it looked better, like once it was more than ruins, it once was a new, living and breathing place. Now, though, it was the hidden rebel base on the fourth moon of Yavin.

The droid watched the princess and Sith apprentice close her eyes, as if she were meditating, and then she opened them violently, staring at nothing, alert and awaiting. With incredible swiftness she pulled out her red lightsaber and dodged the blasters that were coming her way. She also protected C-3PO, who begin moaning and crying for help.

"Run, Threepio!" she cried. "Come on, hide behind those trees! Don't be afraid, I'm not gonna let them hurt you!"

The droid listened to her very sensible suggestion and ran to hide from the rebels. She ran alongside him, her lightsaber deflecting every shot. When they couldn't be seen anymore Leia let out a deep, desperate groan.

"They have them!" she cried. "I know they do! Oh, Han!" she almost threw herself to the floor. If he dies, that'll be my fault! She thought.

"Princess, what are we going to do?" 3PO asked. "Shall we return to the ship?"

"No!" she cried, unable to even consider that. "We can't abandon them."

"But how are we to get pass them?"

"Listen," she tried to clear her mind as she spoke. "This is what we're going to do. You—you go back to the ship. I'm going back, and I will get them back. I don't know how… but I will."

"Oh, my lady!" he sighed.

"Don't worry about me, Threepio," she said.

Worry for them!

"I would worry about you," a voice said behind her.

Her mind had been so occupied, so damn clouded with thoughts of vengeance, that she didn't feel the approach of those rebel soldiers.

Against her will, she gasped.

She tried to collect her thoughts to have some focus, but the dark side was taken it stole of her.

She would've killed every single one of those rebels with ease, except for the fact that now her heart was stronger than her mind. She needed to see him…

And why hadn't they killed her already? She had never thought the rebels could have any level of decency or mercy…

"Will you come with us?" one of the rebels said.

She froze. Words couldn't come to her.

"Are you who we think you are?" another one said.

She just stared at them.

"Have you gone mute?" a rebel dared laugh at her.

"What have you done with them?" she finally found her voice. And it was still dripping with anger.

They all watched her queerly.

"I knew it," a rebel said to his partner in a whisper, though she heard it perfectly.

"Did you see how much he changed after we started shooting?"

"I bet they're together."

"The princess and that scoundrel? I doubt it. But I bet he and the Wookiee are working for her."

Leia's heart raced.

"Where are they?" she cried.

"Don't worry," a rebel said. "We'll take you with them. On one condition, of course."

"What?" there was more fear than anger in her, now.

"Your lightsaber. You have to give it to us."

He might as well had asked for her to remove all her clothes! Did she hear that right?

Could that guy be so much of a fool?

Her lightsaber is her life. Her father had said that repeatedly. She could never let go of it!

But Han…

And Chewie…

Oh, damn the rebels!

"No!" she cried.

They all looked like they were prepared to die. But she was not thinking of killing.

She thought immediately of her dear mother. So far removed from everything having to do with the Sith and the Force. Padmé would never trade a possession for a life.

Leia threw her lightsaber to the floor, less she would change her mind soon.

One of the rebels took it hastily.

Then they pointed their weapons at the princess and the droid.

As prisoners, they were taken inside the rebel base. To Han and Chewie, Leia thought/hoped.

* * *

The curse Han uttered when he saw Leia escorted by the rebels, with blasters guarding her every side, made C-3PO blush. It made Leia smile.

" _Is it really her?"_

" _How did she end up here?"_

" _What are we to do now?_

Voices were whispering. To Leia it felt like loud cries.

People put chains in the princess' wrists. Her droid was taken into custody; and Han and Chewie were still too far from her.

" _Why hasn't she tried anything?"_

" _Seems like a trap to me!"_

Her eyes moved in every direction, hoping to engrave the memory forever. It could later be useful…

Then, a voice she knew came closer.

A man she had welcomed in her home, in Naboo and many others.

"Sir?" pain made her voice shake. "Could it really be you?"

He was one of her mother's closest friend, or so she had believed. He and his wife were also her godfather and godmother. Their planet was one of her favorite destinations, too.

"Bail Organa…!"

He watched her sadly, though there was no guilt in him.

"Leia…" he simply said. "My dear. I'm sorry it had to come to this."

"Me too." Tears crowded in her eyes. "Traitor!" she cried.

He didn't seem to take that as an insult.

"Am I a traitor, Leia? In your eyes? Definitely. To the Empire? Like you have no idea. But, dear. I am not without principles. I've sworn loyalty once, and a million times, to the Old Republic. I will not let it down. I will never stop fighting. I knew that someday it would affect you, and your mother. And it hurts me because I—I have affection for both, and that you know—"

"Oh, stop talking!" she cried. "Would you say all this to my parents' face? No, you wouldn't have the guts!"

"To tell all this to the Emperor's face wouldn't take guts, it would take insanity, Leia. Though I have faith, that one day, Vader will be defeated…"

"Shut up!" pain corroded her soul and it shattered her.

She could almost feel Bail's heartbeat as fast as her own. It destroyed her to know, that he was speaking sincerely.

"What are you planning to do with me?" she asked, tears now dried in her face.

"We don't know," Bail said. "We won't hurt you, Leia."

Well, of course! Too bad she couldn't say the same about them…

"We will inform the Empire," a female voice said.

"Madam!" Leia couldn't believe life was a reality anymore. "Mon Mothma!"

With her characteristic elegance, clad exquisitely in a long white robe, she appeared; a pair of pale blue-green eyes stared at the princess.

"So I'm supposed to expect the whole Imperial Senate to be here!" Leia cried, incensed.

"Not quite," Mon Mothma said, softly. "How'd you end up here, princess?"

Leia gave her a look of scorn.

"Bring my friends to me," Leia said. Having recovered from the shock, she could return to her haughty ways. She held her head high and expected to be obeyed. Though she wasn't feeling so weak, she knew she wouldn't be able of taking down all those rebels by herself. Her high rank was almost all she had for the moment.

Mothma seemed calm and collected. "Do as she said," she ordered.

"Han!" Leia cried as he was so close to her.

She didn't care for embarrassment, or if he didn't feel the same way, she needed to hold him and be hold by him. She was soon in his arms, then she saw the Wookiee, unable to move in those chains.

"Release him!" Leia cried, indignation barely allowing her to speak.

"We can't. Too dangerous to…"

"Cowards!" she interrupted. "Senator Organa, give me back my belongings. Your filthy 'soldiers' took from me."

Bail looked at the rebels that had brought Leia and C-3PO. They showed him the droid and a lightsaber. "Forgive me, Leia-"

"Oh, go to hell!"

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Han whispered at her ear.

* * *

Leia supposed the rebels weren't accustomed to taking prisoners; the place in which they put them was not as bad as what the Empire designed for traitors. Yet it was worse for her than even Han's ship. After all, the Millennium Falcon didn't appear as bad for her as she once thought.

There was only one resting place and it was meant for the princess, but watching the pain the Wookiee was in, she granted Chewbacca the sitting place. She sat on the floor and Han did the same, complaining even more than that girl so used to castles. Oddly though, she was thankful for his attitude, it somehow relieved the tension. The way he mocked tragedy helped her do the same; she was embarrassed for the tears she had shed earlier. He realized that and continued with his jokes and teasing, hoping to distract her from the situation they were in, and he -almost disrespectfully- brought himself close to the princess. She let him.

"How the hell did you get captured, _Sith Lady_?" Han was now too close from her. No one could hear but her.

"I was trying to save you," her voice was also a quiet whisper. "Shut up before you make me regret it even more."

"I suppose I should thank you now."

"Well, it's the least you can do—"

"That would be, if you had actually succeeded!"

She put her hand on his arm, and harshly pinched him. He smiled more than anything.

"Either way," he said, more softly. "Thanks for coming after me. I probably don't deserve it."

"You definitely don't!"

"Did you really miss me so much?"

"Do you want to die in my hands instead of the rebels?"

"That doesn't sound so bad."

They were on the floor.

Everyone was too busy to even look at them.

Leia's body was resting against Han's strong chest, and her head was laid on his. Had one of them moved their face slightly, their lips would've met.

"Those handcuffs really suit you, captain Solo." She said, brushing her hands with his.

"Really, I hate them, Leia."

She laughed mildly.

"What?"

"You called me Leia."

"Oh! You're right. Forgive me, Your Majesty."

"Is there any situation in which you aren't a total jerk, Han?"

"Maybe. Though I doubt we will live to see it."

"We're not gonna die."

"You seem pretty confident. Just because those people know you, doesn't mean they care about you."

"Maybe they don't. But other people do."

"Who?"

"My family."

"Oh, yeah. What do you think our emperor will do when he finds out that you've been captured?"

"I rather not think of that."

"Me too."

They rested in silence for some time.

Leia felt strangely at ease.

"Am I a comfortable pillow?" Han teased.

"Not so bad, I guess."

"In an hour we switch, okay?"

"How about now?"

He widened his eyes. Then he laughed.

"I think you're losing it, princess."

"I hope I am. Look, Chewie fell asleep."

"You should've seen him earlier. He gave the rebels a good fight."

"I'm sure he did." She laughed. "And I'm sure you did, too."

"I told you they would have to pass over my dead body before reaching you."

"That was about the bounty hunter."

"About anyone who comes between you and me."

"You know what, Han?" her smile went sly, her tone was mischievous, still low. "I am not paying ANYTHING to you."

"Really?"

"Even if we get out of this. If I am safe in my castle again. If I am under the care of the emperor. If I drown in money. You're not getting anything from me."

She felt his body grow tense and warm.

"I stand by what I said," Han smiled.

"Do you?" Leia questioned.

She was going to say something else, but Han Solo's lips were kissing her.

At first, very slowly and sweetly.

Then with intensity.

She could sense that he wanted to put his hands on her, and that he cursed the handcuffs that were preventing him.

She removed his and hers and they could truly hold each other now.

"You mean to tell me you could've done that this whole time?" he half laughed, half scowled.

"We need to keep appearances. I'm putting them back on in a second!"

"In a minute," he corrected.

His big hands traveled from her neck to face, to caress her cheeks. Then they were on her waist, then they danced on her legs.

Leia worried people could see them, or even worse, take evidence of what was happening. So, while laughing, she stopped Han, and put the handcuffs on him again.

Then she put hers on.

"Could we at least have another kiss?" Han asked, shamelessly.

"No," she couldn't stop her smile and the warm feeling inside her.

But despite her words, she leaned over, and kissed him again.


	15. Imperials

**A/N: For this version of the Empire there is no Death Star.**

 **I honestly think Anakin is strong enough in the Force to not need a super weapon (or at least to think he doesn't need one).**

 **Thanks to anyone who's reading so far, and feel free to let me know what you think.**

 **Finally I'm including Padmé more not just as usual Padmé but as Queen Amidala. Hope you enjoy it, here it is!**

Chapter XV: Imperials

In the Skywalker castle in Naboo, Darth Vader's office was one of the most stunning rooms. Wide, sober and somber, it was not a place anyone liked to visit, in spite of its fancy and lavish feel. Not even Anakin's family entered that room, only the royal guards could and would come and interrupt the Emperor when he was there, thinking about the Galaxy's issues, and how to fix them. And by fix them, I mean assign someone to whatever problem there was.

When the royal guards saw the bounty hunter arrive (this was now the third time he had come), they knew he was not going out of that room alive.

 _That he had lost them, again?_

 _That Darth Vader could understand?_

Anakin's laugh was almost diabolical.

So resented.

So filled with fury and fear.

Boba Fett was about to explain—something. Something that the emperor didn't want to hear. The bounty hunter held his head high, seemingly unafraid, Vader almost admired him for that.

He forgave him once. He had actually granted Boba a second chance. When had Darth Vader actually done such a thing? Well, the bounty proved why that wasn't something the Emperor should ever do again. He could not be so forgiven.

"Princess Leia didn't want to be caught…"

Why was he even bothering to speak and give excuses? Vader wondered.

"I almost got them, sir, but she…."

Seriously, does he even have shame?

Vader made a fist, he lifted his human hand, and then, Boba couldn't breathe anymore.

Fett shot Vader with his blaster as he fell to the floor. Of course, he didn't even touch the Emperor.

Vader then removed the bounty hunter's mask, and saw a face he hadn't seen in quite some time…

As he saw Boba's face of pain, he saw the faces of friends being tortured.

Why did he ever stop using clones? They were a million times more effective than anyone else ever was to him. But, he wanted them to be free to do whatever they want, and they deserved to be free of the Empire... Vader sighed. He could really use clone troopers, now in the face of another war.

For a second he looked at Boba, and he thought, an army of him would be useful… instead of killing him, the Empire could use his genes… but, he had already failed Vader. TWICE. And in a mission as important as bringing back the princess… No. Boba's life couldn't be spared.

Hatred and strong fury possessed the Emperor, as he thought of his lost daughter, in the dirty hands of a smuggler, of that damn captain Solo.

For a moment, Fett thought that the Emperor wasn't going to kill him, as he saw Vader's pensive look. Fett breathed with difficulty, then he tried to stand up, but just as he tried, the dark lord lifted his human hand again, though this time, he wasn't going to choke Boba. Blue lighting came from the Emperor's hand, knocking down the till then fearless bounty hunter. Now, Jango's genetic son couldn't help but to scream in loud, unbearable pain.

His armor started melting, and you could see his skull. It was a slow and indescribably painful death.

* * *

Vader called for his guards and ordered them to take away Boba Fett's body.

They were dragging him away when the light step of a woman ran into them.

Padmé looked at the scene with supreme fear and disgust. In spite of being married to Darth Vader for more than twenty years, she could still be surprised by the things that she saw.

She gasped and looked alternatively at the corpse and at Vader.

He looked annoyed.

Why did she have to go there?

Padmé never went to Vader's office and she picked up that precise moment from any other? Damn, bad luck.

"What are you doing here?" the Emperor asked his wife.

"A better question would be," she said, entering the room and looking for a place to sit down. "What exactly are you doing? What's going on, Anakin?"

"Um," he mumbled. He simply couldn't explain anything to her. "Padmé… I'm very busy. Could you just go and let me do my work?"

"Your work!" she exclaimed, shocked to her very core. "You've just killed a man! A—a clone, I think."

"No. Well, I guess, technically he was but…" he groaned and then he passed his hand over his face. "I'm serious, Padmé. I'm too busy now."

"I will leave!" she cried, decisively. "But first, I came to ask you something."

"Can't it wait?"

"No."

"All right. Tell me, quickly."

Her face redden in indignation. She knew Darth Vader but she hardly ever received such treatment from him.

She could tell, that wasn't Anakin with her. It was the Emperor. The cruel Sith lord. No matter how much she wanted to turn her back on him right now, she really needed to speak to him. And perhaps, Vader would be a million times more useful than Anakin in that situation.

"Have you spoken to princess Leia lately?" she asked, very coldly and formally. If he wanted to be the Emperor, she could be Queen Amidala.

He was too afraid of the truth to even notice her cold demeanor.

"Yes," he lied. "Actually, I spoke to her this morning."

"Oh, why didn't you tell me? Didn't she ask for me?"

"Yes, but I didn't want to bother you…"

"By speaking to my child?" the red of her face was now stealing any sweetness and charm left in her. "Anakin, it's been so long. Why hasn't she comeback already? Did something happen? Why—why do you look like that? You're hiding something from me, aren't you? Answer me!"

He was unable of saying anything.

He turned his back on her, definitely couldn't face her.

"What is it, Anakin?" her voice was trembling. "Is it Luke? What happened to Luke?"

Could he be honest?

Could he really look into the eyes of the woman he loved and destroy her heart?

Could he confess and say—

 _I don't even know where Luke is or has been!_

 _And now our daughter is missing, as well! She's in the hands of some criminal, she most likely knows about the civil war by now… and…_

Oh, he simply could force choke Padmé right now!

He can't stand her voice asking him all those questions which he could never answer.

He can't stand thinking about their children.

He can't stand knowing that Padmé's death is so near…

The dark side flows through him, poisoning every bit of his soul, shattering every bit of humanity left in him…

And then he sees her tears, and they burn him like lava on his skin.

That's what he can't stand the most.

Then something happens.

She looks at him in fear, not just for her children but for herself. He can sense she's terrified looking at his grim face. Yet, despite her fear, she approaches him. She puts her arms around him and she wets his chest with her tears.

And those tears work like water over a dark fire.

She can heal him and make love stronger than anything else.

"Padmé, my love," he said, emotion almost too strong for words. "You're all the light left in me. Please, never leave me."

She trembled.

"Anakin, what's going on? Please, tell me," she begged.

"Leia hasn't found Luke yet. I don't know where our son is."

"Is that all? Please, don't lie!"

"Yes. I'm sorry."

She sighed sadly.

"I'll leave you alone now. Forgive me for disturbing you," she said, coldness now back in her tone of voice.

He didn't have the energy to bring her back.

"I'll see you at dinner," she said once she was by the door.

"I'm sorry," his voice was low. "I can't tonight, darling. I have a meeting with the imperial officers."

"I know. I want to be present on that 'meeting'," she said, making a scornful emphasis on the word, _meeting_.

He thought his head was going to explode.

"Why? Padmé. Since when do you care about the Empire's affairs? You know only Naboo is under your care."

"I said I'll be present and I will be, lord Vader."

He blinked in disbelief.

"Why do you—"

"Goodbye. Till dinner."

"Darling please!"

It was of no use. She was gone.

* * *

The main dining room of the Skywalker castle had been unused for a really long time now.

Several officers—all of them actually—, were from wealthy families and they could easily tell that the Emperor hadn't put too much thought into making the place acceptable for the guests. Of course, none of them could complain, nor even make a face of displeasure.

The Emperor of the Skywalker Empire had a face and a voice that didn't allow for anyone to speak their mind in his presence.

"Your majesty," Grand Moff Tarkin was one of the few who looked upon Vader without any apparent fear. Maybe because he had met him when he was still the peaceful Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker. "I must tell you, you're needed in the battlefield. The only reason for the Rebellion's strength gain, is our poor military…"

"Governor Tarkin!" the Emperor cut him short. In spite of respecting him greatly, Vader couldn't stand hearing his army of stormtroopers being trash-talked. "I assure you, I do not take the rebels so lightly anymore. I do plan to take some measures. They will be crushed. And sooner than you think."

"Forgive me, my lord. But this could've easily been avoided. Had we continued with the late Palpatine's designs…"

"Enough!" Vader roared. And Tarkin could tell he had tented his luck too much.

Though most of the imperial officers agreed with Tarkin, they look upon him condescendingly. Fear stronger than principles. But they all thought it, and Vader could tell. They thought a super weapon would make the Empire invincible. But Darth Vader knew they were wrong. What was a mass destruction weapon good for, against the power of the Force?

If only Luke and Leia were there.

If only Vader could be out there on the battlefield.

But he had to stay close to Padmé to avoid her tragic fate…

But, if only…!

He could shut them treacherous thoughts once and for all.

For now, he allowed them to think that. Later he would show them.

"How did the battle in Corellia go?" Vader asked looking at General Cassio Tagge.

"There was a complete lockdown and blockade," Tagge answered, trying not to look afraid. "We could, in fact, realize that they were not only keeping Jedi safe, but also supplying the rebel forces."

"Did the Jedi escape?" the Emperor asked.

There was a dead silence that was louder than any response.

Vader sighed. It's not like he could blame them. He was the only one who could kill a Jedi in those days.

Still he showed no patience.

"Do you perhaps feel like your responsibilities are too much for you, General?"

He gasped. What could he even say?

Luckily for the officer, a royal guard walked in, taking the Emperor's and everyone's focus.

"Her Majesty, Queen Amidala of the Skywalker Empire, has arrived!" cried the old and acid voice.

Vader had almost forgotten that she was coming, so he looked quite surprised at the announcement.

Every single man stood up and took a bow.

Queen Amidala looked more stunning than Vader had seen in a while. Probably since her last birthday she hadn't looked so put together.

While Anakin preferred the simple and sweet look of Padmé, Vader simply adored the magnificence of Amidala.

In an enormous, and elaborated red and black gown, the Empress appeared. Her make-up was quite exaggerated by Padmé standards. Face madly white, and lips bloody red. A dark blue eye shadow gave her sweet brown eyes a look of defiance and seduction. Her soft brown curls were perfectly concealed in a simple yet tight bun. Above her head, her dark crown finished her air of imperialism and strong beauty.

"Good evening," she said in a low voice, so commanding that she might as well had said, "Bow down to me."

She sat across the table, so she could face Vader as she spoke.

"We weren't expecting this honor," Tarkin said. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"

Amidala bowed her head, then she looked at her husband.

"Well," she said. "When I heard you were coming, I thought I might take the opportunity to inform myself more broadly regarding the rebellion."

"Your majesty," Orson Krennic said, respectfully and almost gallantly. "We could really use the help of an experienced diplomat right now. It truly is a pleasure to see you…"

He stopped talking, feeling Vader's burning gaze upon him.

Amidala laughed faintly. She really disliked imperial officers.

"What were you discussing?" Amidala asked.

"The recent siege in Corellia," Krennic jumped and said. He could tell that again, he had said the wrong thing. Maybe the Emperor didn't wish for his wife to be so well informed.

"What?" she couldn't hide her surprise. "What happened there?"

This time they all knew it was better to keep quiet and wait for what the Emperor said.

"Well," Vader said, reluctantly. "A battle. Our military managed to stop the rebels that attacked there."

"I know so little of the rebellion," Amidala confessed. "I wish to be told everything you can say-"

"My dear, there's just too much for us to discuss it now," Anakin said. "Later you can be told. For now, we have to stay in subject—"

"You're right, my lord," she said and Anakin's mouth almost dropped. "Tomorrow I'll be going to the Capital and then I can know."

"Really?" Krennic couldn't help but say. "Guess I'll see you again, soon, your Majesty."

She smiled at him and Vader almost choked Krennic, then and there.

Vader looked at Padmé, thinking to himself, _"You're not going anywhere…!"_


	16. Imperial Senate

Chapter XVI: Imperial Senate

Queen Amidala couldn't be bullied, not even by the Emperor himself.

So in spite of his many requests, civilized and uncivilized, she went to the Capital City. Of course, there was only so much freedom she could obtain; and to her regret, she couldn't go alone.

Unlike when princess Leia left, the queen wasn't to be accompanied by only stormtroopers and royal guards.

Vader himself took her to Coruscant, no matter how much she protested that it wasn't necessary.

Padmé thought it very suspicious.

After a year in which he never left Naboo, no matter how much he was requested to, now all of the sudden he insists on going? Strange behavior no doubt. Could it be the Civil War? Or Luke and Leia's long absence? Whatever it was, there clearly was something he was hiding from her, and she was determinate to finding out.

She thought she could get rid of him in the senate building, after all, Anakin still hated politics.

"Do you want to meet for dinner at the castle, Anakin? Or will you still be occupied?" Padmé asked while they were still in Vader's ship.

"No. We can go together after we're done in the Imperial Senate," he answered.

She looked shocked.

 _We?_ He said?

"You're coming?"

"Yes. Why do you look so displeased?" he asked, lowering his voice, giving way to Vader's dark voice.

"I—I'm just surprised, that's all," she muttered, nervously. "You never go to the Senate."

"Well, today I'm going," and his tone said _deal with it_.

He noticed his rough treatment of his wife and tried to be kinder.

"Would you prefer to spend the day without me?" he asked, taking her human hand and bringing it close to his chest.

She also got closer.

"Ani… it's not that."

He smiled at that old nickname. After so long, and she still uses it? Anakin found it very sweet no matter how ridiculous the name felt on the Emperor.

"Then there's no problem? Great."

"Anakin, why can't I go alone?" she made him let go of her hand, carefully keeping a soft and loving voice, trying to not sound too political. "This isn't a family trip we're doing. And you never go to the senate… why—I mean why can't I go alone?"

"I said I'll be there and I will be—I'm sorry, darling. I don't want to disagree with you, and I don't want to fight or be so cross with you. So please, just…"

"Just agree with everything you want?" she sighed. That was the way of Vader. He couldn't accept any opinion that wasn't his own.

He seemed to read into her thoughts.

But he had to stay his ground, no matter how much that could upset her.

He was doing it for her own sake, he told himself.

In the Capital, perhaps Padmé could be more vulnerable to the attacks of the rebels. And he also didn't want for her to know too much about the state of the Galaxy. That could definitely create some issues between them…

* * *

Grey and metallic walls made the Imperial Senate Building.

Unlike the place in which Padmé worked as a senator during the times of the Republic, the work environment here was difficult and oftentimes uncomfortable.

As the Emperor walked the hallways, dressed in all black and leather, with a Sith lightsaber hanging from his belt, heads bowed and backs bent in reverence, more for fear than respect.

Next to him, his still beautiful wife almost appeared the opposite to Darth Vader. His garments were simple for his rank. Hers were the lavish excellence of a queen. Her long black gown swept the cold floors, and her exquisite jewelry shined like the stars of the Galaxy.

That day her makeup was somewhat simple, letting her sweet features be on display to be admired.

Royal guards walked a few steps from them.

As it had been so long since Padmé left the senate to occupy herself only with her home planet, and as Vader never cared to talk to the senators, they had no office to use.

So they went to Bail Organa's one. He was gracious enough to welcome them under such a short notice.

"Your Majesties," Bail bowed to the Emperor and Empress. "It is my honor, to be graced by your presence."

Padmé felt strange.

She could never get used to someone who was once her equal to address her in such a fashion.

She still thought of Bail as a friend. So she addressed him as such.

"Bail, please," she said, coming closer to him and giving him her hand. "Let's leave formalities for another time! It's so great to see you again! And it's been so long, too. Tell me, how have you been?"

The senator of Alderaan never lost his respectful glance and tone. "Fine, my lady. Just fine."

"At what time will everyone be ready?" the Emperor asked, taking his wife's hand, and bringing her closer to him.

Bail felt the hostility of Vader but couldn't do anything about it. Except pretend he was okay with it.

"As soon as you say, Your Majesty," Bail said, sounding unafraid of the Emperor's dry tone, while maintaining a formal countenance.

"Get them ready, now," Vader ordered.

"As you wish."

And after excusing himself, Bail left that powerful couple to themselves.

Padmé tried one last time, "I assure you I can inform you of everything I learn at that meeting, Anakin. I know you can't stand senators. You don't have to be here."

"We have already discussed this, Padmé!"

She had to bite her lips. _No, you talked while I listened!_ She thought annoyed.

* * *

Anakin and Padmé shared their podium at the center of the senate.

Hundreds of senators watched and answered as Padmé made her political questions; while Anakin looked bored out of his mind.

Hour after hour seemed to drag, and Anakin was beginning to wish he hadn't come. After all, they hardly touched troublesome subjects for him. As long as they don't mention the rebellion, he thought, we'll be fine.

If anyone dared, though… the Emperor wasn't feeling very forgiving.

At one point, Anakin wasn't even listening anymore. He just entertained himself by watching the beautiful queen as she looked so in earnest and in such a passion, discussing with the rest of the senate. Or more than discussing, speaking, since no one dared disagree with anything she said.

The queen was as feared as Vader by that time.

There is an incredible and deadly silence when she speaks. And a loud and savage noise when it's the others turn.

Then, there are no voices.

No words.

No discussion.

Is it over? Anakin wondered.

As a new person comes in, all eyes watched him.

It is a wealthy and high ranking man in the Skywalker Empire.

An officer who only a few days ago had been dining with Darth Vader and Queen Amidala.

Krennic? Anakin is confused.

He requests to be heard, and Mon Mothma lets him into her podium.

"Your Majesties," Orson Krennic begins. "I was informed of Lady Amidala's visit at the senate. I wasn't aware of our Emperor's presence, so I direct to you both now. My dearest respect to both…"

 _Always a sycophant to my wife, that Krennic_ … Anakin sighed while annoyance was growing into anger.

"…The piece of information that I just learned, I regret to say, is of the worst the Galaxy could receive at a time like this."

Anakin stood up and felt his heart beat like crazy, waiting for whatever stupidity Krennic was about to commit.

"The Rebels…"

Vader heard and almost pulled out his lightsaber and jumped over that man.

"The Rebels have made a public announcement…" his face seemed to have more wrinkles, Padmé thought and listened attentively. "The Rebel Alliance has captured princess Leia…!"

The noise that followed unable Anakin and Padmé from hearing the rest.

In a matter of seconds, Padmé's eyes exploded with violent and bitter tears, she gasped for air and she almost collapsed into the ground.

Anakin wasn't sure of what hurt him more, if Krennic's words or the sight of his broken-hearted wife.

"Krennic!" Vader's loud cry ringed throughout the senate.

He didn't even look at Padmé or tried to make her be seated. He just jumped from their pod and ran towards Orson Krennic.

The man almost fainted in fear as he saw that black shadow of a man approaching.

"My lord!" he cried. "I came immediately to let you know… I assure you! We have people looking for the rebel base, more than ever!"

"Liar!" Vader roared. "You come in with this information and you drive everybody crazy! Who's to say that's even true?"

"It has to be!" a desperate female voice cries. "Oh, my poor Leia! What have they done with her? Krennic, speak! What exactly have you heard? What did they…? Ugh! SHUT UP!" she cries as the loud voices prevent her from expressing coherently. She makes her way towards where Krennic and Vader are standing, but before reaching them, the Enperor declares once more of the "falsehood" Officer Krennic just pronounced.

"Your Majesty!" the desperate man cries, voice trembling and legs shaking. "I assure you that my intelligence is very reliable…!"

He can't say anything else.

Darth Vader's metal hand grabs Krennic's neck, clenching in fury and dragging him without using the Force.

* * *

Orson Krennic sees all black and barely manages to breathe enough to not die. Then, he founds himself in a fancy but cold office. It is Bail Organa's one.

And he is there alone with the cruel Emperor.

"Who gives you the authority to make such an announcement without my permission?" Vader says as he lifts Krennic from the floor.

And now, the man does feel like his life is running out.

"Where did you hear such a lie!?" Vader shouted.

Krennic is incapable of answering with such a tight grip on his throat.

His silence infuriates the Emperor even further.

"Anakin!" he suddenly hears.

Who could dare scream at Darth Vader?

He turns around slightly—without freeing Krennic—, and sees Padmé, who's watching, looking terrified.

"Stop!" she cried. "I want to talk to him! Stop it please! Leave him!"

 _Why must she care so much about what happens to him?_ Anakin's clouded mind makes him jealous.

He lets go of his victim.

On the floor, the poor man looks on the verge of death.

Padmé rushes to him and puts her hands on him, helping him sit. She also helps him unbutton his shirt, so he can breathe sooner and easier.

The Emperor immediately approaches them, he grabs Padmé's arm and throws her away.

As she landed at the other side of the room, she hits her head and almost passes out.

She tries with all of her strength to remain conscious, and as she battles her eyes to keep them open, she sees:

A vibrant red.

Yellow eyes.

A splash of blood.

Fallen limbs.

A dead man.

"Anakin…" she mutters, she cleans blood from her head, and amidst a thousand tears and in supreme fear, she cries, "What are you doing…? Why? My love, you're breaking my heart!"

She finally passes out, and with that, she is released from seeing the rest of atrocities committed by Darth Vader that awful day.

* * *

 **A/N: I know it doesn't make much sense for Orson Krennic to be the one who brings in the news at the Imperial Senate, but I just really hate/love that character and I didn't think there was any other way of bringing him into the story.**


	17. Rebel Base

**Finally found the time to write again! I hope you can enjoy what's next :)**

Chapter XVII: Rebel Base

Anakin and Padmé sat in the same room, they shared their space, but though only a few meters could separate them, they seemed to be very far from each other. They never spoke to each other; they never even glanced at the other.

Inside the Executer—the Emperor's personal ship—, deep inside Vader's personal quarters, Padmé was wrapped around her husband's black sheets; looking weary, feeling drained, awaiting something worse than death.

For a time she didn't know to be a day, a week, or a month, she had seen true horror. Atrocities with no end. She had suffered a growing pain that seemed to cling to her, deeper and with more and more strength. She had been— _felt_ alone.

If she would've felt Anakin was with her that would've most certainly eased her pain, but long awful day after the other she only saw Darth Vader.

If only he was honest with her… he could allow her to see the man that still lived behind the Emperor and Sith Lord.

But his face was of harshness, strength and woe. He couldn't allow any softer feeling; any sadness and hurt that might slip through could absolutely break him. Make him crumble, which would only doom his already endangered family.

Anakin sat on a wide chair, his back on his wife and his eyes staring at nothing.

Over and over again he passed his flesh hand through his wavy hair, telling—ordering his body to not tremble, forcing his eyes to remain dry. Incapable of pushing away his thoughts—

 _Luke… Leia… Luke… Leia… Luke! Leia!_

Where could his children be?

Though he tries, he can't remember the last time he saw his son. He rubs his forehead, so harshly he leaves his skin looking red. What worries him he most about Luke—while at the same time eases him somewhat—is the knowledge of the reason for Luke's absence. No one took him. He left because he wanted to. Even if his son is hiding from him, he's most likely safe.

Leia on the other hand…

Oh! To simply think of her name makes him suddenly feel air is missing. He feels it in his chest, deep inside his dark heart, such pain he only experienced during his worst nightmares.

Or maybe like when his mother passed away…. But no. He has to control his emotions. Because his daughter isn't lost. Not yet. Not ever!

But then why can't he feel her? Where in all the Galaxy could her strong and bold presence be?

Vader's ship had no course. It was going on every random direction, looking hopelessly for the hidden rebel base.

Each route it took made no difference to Anakin, he could tell he wasn't doing any progress; he was far from reaching his kidnapped daughter.

Kidnapped! Taken? How was that possible?

He went over it a million times and he could never make any sense of it. Leia was too powerful to fall in the hands of some random criminal; she was far too guarded to be captured by the rebel forces.

So where in all the Worlds could she be?

Anakin couldn't think of it anymore, going over every possibility again would make his brain explode.

He groaned, sighed, and weakly walked towards the bed, which provoked no reaction in his wife. She remained on her side of the bed, seated, frozen, broken.

The sight of Padmé was another thing that could break him, so he preferred, strangely, to not look at her. He just lay by her side, with a hand movement turn off the lights, closed his eyes, and prayed sleep would come to him void of dreams.

For a few hours, he was so lucky.

His sleeping mind and body were at ease. If only he could rest like that forever…

But, oh! More vivid and real than ever, he saw her death again.

Was that the Skywalker Castle in Naboo?

In her luxurious bedroom, the Emperor's wife was beginning to wake up. She felt the bed started trembling; the whole place shook as the thousands of rebels raided the castle.

"Death to the Queen!"

"Death to the Queen!"

"Death to the Queen!"

The words roared so in synch, like the chanting of a livid stadium crowd.

She can't run. She can't hide. She doesn't even try to… They're in her room. They drag her from the bed, still she shows no resistance. Almost as if she were ready to die such a violent death. She closes her sad eyes, a unique sweetness and melancholy reflecting there, and she murmurs, incredibly low and lovingly, a hint of passion and forgiveness barely escaping: " _Anakin_."

The time has come.

Oh, Padmé.

"Padmé! No, no, no!"

"Anakin?"

"Padmé!" A despair she didn't know was even possible made her jump and react.

Padmé shook her husband, trying to get him to wake up, but he just continued screaming her name in his slumber.

She ran to get a glass of water, his screams cooling her skin and making her shake at every step. She stood before him, doubting to do it, fearing the Sith that could destroy her, but watching him suffer so much scared her a lot more than death. She threw the water in his face, which finally made him wake up.

He groaned, jumping and looking at every direction. Padmé shrink in fear but did not leave him.

She felt her thumping heart stop as his metal hand grabbed her, but when his flesh one collaborated to wrap her in a hug, she let out a long breath of relief.

"Padmé!" Anakin cried amidst his tears, grabbing her so tightly he made her scream in pain. "I'm sorry," he begged but couldn't let go of her. "I'm so sorry!"

"I'm fine," she assured him and made him look at her directly in the eyes. "You had a nightmare," she didn't ask but stated.

He breathed in and out, and nodded along.

"Tell me," Padmé put her flesh hand on his bared shoulder, setting her understanding eyes on his troubled glance.

"I can't," he breathed.

"Please—" he suddenly kissed her lips, so abruptly she almost pushed him away. There was such anxiety coming from him, Padmé forgot about her own fear and pain completely, worrying and focusing only on him. "Please, darling!" she muttered amidst the kissing. "I'm tired of this! I want you to trust me again! I want to help you!"

He couldn't stop kissing and touching her, he still felt he was on the brink of losing her forever.

"I don't want to frighten you," he managed to say. "You've your own pain and worries… to also trouble you with mine."

"Was it about Luke and Leia?" she asked, obviously terrified.

He shook his head and she could tell he was honest.

"Please don't make me talk about it," he begged. "I couldn't stand it!"

She pitied him and said nothing. She allowed him to heal, letting herself be loved intensely, even finding relief and strange joy in his desperate touch.

* * *

Princess Leia almost blushed, embarrassed, after her soring stomach let everyone know she was lying when she said she wasn't hungry.

In her cell in the hidden rebel base, a small table, almost lavish for the place, had been set in front of her; it came almost immediate to her arrival.

While the other prisoners had to settle for some left over rebel supplies, for the young princess there was actual food. Set perfectly before her in actual plates and glasses.

"Are you sure you aren't going to eat that?" Han asked, looking at her amazed and unsettled. "Starving to death isn't going to free us, princess," he was sitting next to her, and almost awkwardly, he made an attempt at being closer. He succeeded.

"Forget it!" she snapped. "I can very well manage with the food they've been giving you."

"You say that because you haven't tried it yet," he grinned.

She rolled her eyes at him and then approached the other prisoner, Chewbacca was still in chains, for him and Han there was no table, but they had at least fed them.

Before she could even take a small taste she pushed the food away, thinking nothing had ever smelled worse, shocked that they could call that disgusting junk food.

"Told you," Han couldn't help his smirk. "Just eat your banquet, Highness."

"No!" she was stubborn. "I don't want to owe them anything!"

"Alright," he gave up. "Do you mind if we try it?" he asked, shamelessly.

They had now been an entire week in the rebel base, and day after day, a great meal was brought before the princess, which she always rejected scornfully. Though it looked delicious and the smell was hard to resist, she wouldn't have a bite of it. She could tell, those were all Alderaanian delicacies, so of course, they came from her god-father. Bail Organa. The damn traitor! Of course she couldn't taste it, though it was becoming harder and harder as the days passed by, and her hungry stomach had just proved that.

"No," she said, almost angry. "They might think I ate it!"

"So what? Why would you care what they think of you?"

"I don't! But—but…"

"Yes?"

"Fine," she gave up. "Eat it."

Before she could finish her sentence Han had already grabbed a plate, but to Leia's surprise, he didn't eat anything. He took it to his best friend, who growled loudly, probably thanking him.

"No problem, Chewie," Han smiled and then finally ate.

Leia looked at them almost guilty.

They were suffering for no good reason. They hadn't any reason to be there… and she was forcing them.

Just because she wanted to learn as much of the rebellion as possible, to bring the information to her father, didn't mean her company had to stand be depraved from freedom and food.

She looked down and sighed.

"You alright, princess?" Han asked, putting away a piece of fruit he had been enjoying.

"I'm just sorry," she said quietly.

Han's eyes went wide. "What? Why?"

"You and Chewie thought you would have an easy job… take two passengers to the Capital. Get paid and get on with your lives. And you've been chased, captured and starved."

"Starved?" he interrupted. "Don't you see all the food in our hands?" he smiled at her but she remained just as serious.

"You should be free…"

"Yeah, that I do miss," he admitted. "But I'm sure you have a plan. We can wait."

"Can you?" she asked.

"Sure."

The Wookiee then yelled, clearly he wasn't so okay with it…

"Shut up, Chewie!" Han slapped his arm softly. "We've talked about this." He lowered his tone so that only his friend could hear him. "We can't abandon her!"

Leia heard him perfectly and had to repress a smile.

Since their first kiss, they hadn't talked about it and the occasion had no chance of being repeated it.

Even though they weren't alone, Leia's badly hidden smile made Han Solo think the time to make a move again had come.

He approached her, she started to shake, nervous and anxious to see what he was about to do. He sat by her side and took her soft hand; a wider small let him know he could go on. "So what's your plan?" he asked, softly.

Her heart raced.

She cleared her throat. "I don't think it'll be much longer, rebels keep leaving and when there's fewer I think—"

"I meant—" he interrupted. "For us."

Her rosy face became red. "I—I don't know…" she muttered.

"I do," he got closer, his face a hair away from hers.

Both closed their eyes, his hand caressed her cheek…

"Your Majesty," C-3PO said which caused Leia to turn her face and distance herself from Solo. "I think it's time."

"Oh," she said, standing up," Thank you. You're right."

She had programmed the droid to indicate her at what time the rebel who brought her food usually entered her cell, and to warn her a minute earlier.

"You know," Solo said with a hard grin. "I'm so glad they allowed you here, Threepio," his sarcasm made Leia laugh.

"Thank you, sir," the droid said, unaware of the meaning behind Solo's words.

Leia put on her haughtiest face, sitting regally, awaiting the usual rebel.

When she entered, Leia ignored her like every time.

The woman, who while she lacked gracefulness didn't lack beauty, acted the same way, almost irreverent towards the princess.

She picked up the things and put them on a tray. "I see your hunger strike is finally over," she said, without glancing at the princess.

Leia turned red in indignation. "I didn't have even a bite of it! Don't you dare say otherwise to senator Organa…"

She stopped talking as she noticed the lack of care from the rebel's face.

"It was us," Han said standing next to the Wookiee. "Sorry, couldn't resist. You can tell Bail Organa, the handsome man ate all of it. And his Wookiee friend."

The rebel looked at him, dislike plain on her glance. She didn't say anything; just continued to take the plates, glasses, bottles, and little food that was left.

"I doubt senator Organa will come again," the rebel said to everyone's surprise, since every other time she had entered she barely said a few words.

Leia watched her carefully. "Pity," the princess said. "I would've liked for him to be here when I kill all of you."

The rebel finally turned her ocean blue eyes towards the Sith apprentice. "Is that a threat, Leia?" she narrowed her eyes. "You really don't have to. I've known for years now that when my time comes, it will most certainly come at the hands of some imperial."

The princess was quiet for a moment. Almost shocked. "I know perfectly well where I am," she said, anger rising within her. "But like every other rebel scum, you should know you must address me with respect."

"What do you mean, Leia?"

"Ah, I think," Han intervened, awkwardly. "You're being too casual with her."

The rebel smirked. "You're talking about her title?"

"Yes," Han said. "She really doesn't like it when people ignore it. Boy, do I know it!"

The rebel almost smiled at him. "Are you a Corellian, by any chance?"

"Is it that obvious?" Han laughed cockishly.

"Yes," she finally smiled. "It's good to see one of you people intact."

Han looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"I'm just glad to see a Corellian unchanged by… what happened. The fact that you can still smile and make jokes means you weren't there when it happened. You are a lucky man…"

"Solo," he finished for her.

"Right," she accepted. "Captain Solo."

"Just call me Han."

Leia watched the exchange of words she wasn't a part of with extreme displeasure. Her anger fuming at listening to them talk as if she wasn't there.

"You are a lucky man Han Solo," the rebel grinned strangely.

"I agree. But why would you think that?"

"You don't know what happened in Corellia…"

"No. Care to tell me?"

"I'd hate to do it. I was there and I have been trying hard to erase the memory from my head."

Han's face looked darkened. Odd. Not like him at all. "What happened?" he finally asked.

The rebel again set her fiery eyes on the princess, this time with more scorn and hate than ever.

She sighed before speaking. "A siege," she muttered quietly and weakly, clearly reluctant to say more. Before Han could inquire any more, she fled the room.

For the remaining of the day, and even at night, Han didn't speak to the princess.

* * *

Anakin stood on the deck of his personal ship, looking hard and calm, even though he clearly wasn't. He then stared at the blackness of space, reminiscing about days long gone.

How different does outer space appears to him now. Nothing like during his time in the Order, when he would find comfort and guidance as he flew. Such a great pilot he was—still is, even when he almost never gets the chance of flying himself. He has to do that again, he tells himself. When this is all over, he promised himself, he would dedicate a trip dedicated only to flying with no course; he'll do it simply for the pleasure and sense of freedom he would gain. Maybe pod racing…

"Your Majesty," he heard and was quickly startled. Almost ashamed at his simple thoughts. He would've killed that imperial officer and gladly, but the information the officer conveyed instantly gave him the Emperor's full attention. It was regarding the hidden rebel base. Anakin could hardly believe it. They found it!

* * *

Leia stared at the floor, her thoughts eating her mind and her curiosity causing her to act out of character. She turned pleading eyes towards Han Solo, only to discover he was not giving her any attention.

"Han!" she suddenly cried, causing the sleeping Wookiee to get up, the droid to jump, and the smuggler to finally look at her.

Before any words could pass between the two humans, the loud noise from outside the cell made them all turn. The droid with fear, the Wookiee with confusion, the two humans with wonderment.

The sound of blasters—that sound so familiar to the golden protocol droid—made C-3PO run to his mistress's side. "Don't worry, Threepio," Leia said, grimly. Almost too excited. "I have a good feeling about this!"


	18. Imperials Vs Rebels

Chapter XVIII: Imperials vs. Rebels

" _I have a good feeling about this!"_

The princess's feminine voice was heard, her words coming with an odd excitement for what was going to follow; she smiled, and with a hand movement, she removed the Wookiee's chains, he growled, too startled to thank her. The rest of the prisoners looked around every wall of their cell, clearly not sharing the feeling Leia was talking about.

"I have the exact opposite," Solo said, his worry almost showing; he walked towards the door, trying to get a better clue of what was happening, peaking at the noise from outside. There was no doubt as to what was going on. "Sounds like they're having problems," he frowned. "And we're about to, as well!" he cried as he felt with dread the movements around their cell.

"Something is flying above us! Oh, Princess! Did… Did something land on us?" C-3PO didn't ask, more like cried in a frightful voice.

"Imperial ships…" Leia muttered.

"I think they're going to rob you of the pleasure of killing the rebels," Han muttered in a steady yet unnerving voice.

Leia ran to the door, too. "They're being killed," she said calmly, never losing that frighteningly sweet smile.

"Oh dear!" the golden droid exclaimed. "My lady, what are we going to do?"

"They're defending themselves well enough," Leia muttered, mostly to herself, ignoring C-3PO's question. "Stupid troopers, if they leave one of them alive, I'm going to _kill_ them!"

The walls kept shaking around them.

Han was standing very close to the princess, they both had their ears glued to the door; at the proximity, Leia saw him gulp. Then take a step back. She found that more disturbing than the battle that was happening outside.

Something was changing in him and she didn't like it.

She put her hand on his shoulder, and felt his whole body grow tense. "What did I do to you?" she asked, unable of not sounding so bothered. "Why are you treating me like this? Han, speak to me!"

He looked at her all confused. "Princess, I don't think right now is the time to have a conversation—"

Indeed, it wasn't. The walls kept their earthquake-like movement, this time with more intensity, Han put his hands on the wall in front of him, as if he could hold it together; Leia finally focused on something other than Captain Solo, she set her brown eyes on the ceiling, instantly knowing the walls weren't their biggest problem, but before she could try to even stop it from happening, her world went black.

Chewbacca actually managed to protect C-3PO, putting his big strong frame in front of the crying droid. The door had opened seconds before the ceiling fell on them, and Han was able of escaping practically intact.

The vengeful princess wasn't so lucky.

Han looked around the rubble, screaming her name, till he found her white face, looking grey with so much dust on it. He took her out of the debris mess and dragged her small body, trying to get her to safety, which seemed to be impossible as blaster fire rained around them.

"Chewie, we need to get out of here!" Han cried, not even knowing if his friend was still alive. "Chewie!" he cried time and time again, knowing the noise was too loud for the Wookiee to hear it even if he was around and alive.

He cursed endlessly as he ran around the rebel base with Leia in his arms; watching the rebels and stormtroopers as they fought, as they killed, as they fell.

He then seemed to find a safe space at last, behind a tall ancient-looking stone wall that was miraculously still standing; he grabbed the princess even tighter, a huge knot forming in his throat as he felt how cold she was. "Come on, Your Highness!" he cried as he shook her madly. "I thought you wanted to kill the rebels! Come on, Leia, wake up! This is your one chance, you haughty royal pain!" he didn't notice how much his voice was breaking; it sounded raspy and weak.

Solo then screamed, startled, as a rebel with blood coming out of his mouth suddenly appeared next to them. The rebel, who barely looked above twenty, groaned in pain before collapsing to the ground. On the floor, he regarded Solo and the princess for a second with a strange glance before closing his young eyes forever.

Han tried to ignore the corpse next to him, knowing perfectly well he couldn't do anything about it; if he left his hiding place he could endanger the already hurt girl in his arms. But Han felt the rebel's closed eyes penetrate into his troubled soul, and wanting to not see death anymore, he walked straight into it.

He walked straight into the battle.

He felt stupid for moving as he saw there was no other place to hide anymore, and there were many more dead bodies here, both from rebels and imperials.

 _I should be dead by now_ , Solo thought with a splash of irony amidst his fear. So why wasn't he dead? Looking at the fainted girl in his arms, he wondered if maybe she had anything to do with it…

Could it be…. The Force?

Hmmm, he mentally shrugged. The present situation was taking a lot from him, getting him almost religious. _It's just my luck and fear_ , he nervously told himself, it's just luck! Was it? _Well, that and these damn imperial soldiers can't shoot to save their lives!_

 _Good thing the princess can't see them; she'll angrily kill them even when they're on her side…_

He walked and ran and took cover, every second that passed being less able of believing he and Leia were still unscathed. _It's just luck… it's just my luck!_

Well, if it was just luck, at some point he'd have to run out of it. And oh he did! But not to such extent. A Skywalker protected him, even while unconscious, even without knowing.

Two white-armored soldiers pointed their blasters at Solo, clearly just wanting to frighten him, as they didn't fire. _Why?_

"Put the princess down," one stormtrooper ordered.

Without realizing it, Han clung to her even tighter.

He shook his head. Was that selfish? Was he sentencing her? Would the fire pass through Leia so it could reach Solo? Of course not.

She was like a shield between Han Solo and death.

For one short foolish second, he thought they would leave them alone, till he heard, "Set for stun."

Han wanted a blaster as much as he wanted Leia to wake up.

The two stormtroopers pointed their weapons at Han, now without the worry that they might also hurt the princess; slowly, Han backed away, praying they would miss, which was very unlikely giving the distance. Blaster fired but it did not reach Solo nor the princess, instead, the two stormtroopers fell dead to the floor.

For a second Han was shocked, till behind the stormtroopers he saw a rebel holding still her ray gun up. It was a female rebel, the one who usually brought the food to the princess.

She ran till she was a step from him. "Is she dead?" she asked, referring to Leia.

"No," Han said, still struggling with his confusion.

The rebel's face was unreadable, pretty much expressionless. "Come on," she said and motioned Han to follow her. He did not move.

She narrowed her eyes in anger and handed a sporting blaster to the smuggler. "I'll watch your back but you have to hurry!" she cried, now with a seriously annoyed frown on her face.

Han finally recovered his senses and followed her.

* * *

Solo could practically hear the sound of his fast-paced heartbeat as he ran, first through a dark room with only a few green lights still shining. Then through hallways where he could actually see nothing. Till at last the rebel stopped and indicated him to do so, too.

This room they had entered was very strange, it made Han think that they were suddenly in another planet. First of all, it was very quiet. Though the battle was far from over, Han couldn't hear anything anymore.

It was wide, an even to Han's careless eyes, quite magnificent. He walked behind the rebel over the paved shiny stone floors, still holding Leia in his arms; he was shocked to see her still fainted, so when he heard a few low moans from her and felt her move a little, even when it was in pain, he breathed out in relief.

The rebel was now guiding him through a tall stairway, which ended in a podium. He looked down from the top feeling an odd sense of power, which quickly departed him as he remembered the situation he was in. Then he thought annoyed of how he didn't even know that. What was happening? Why did the rebel help him? His male vanity was now lifted.

"Listen," he said, when he was unable of standing that long silence. "Thanks for helping me."

"I'm not helping _you_ ," she answered coldly.

"Alright," he accepted, his vanity sobered. If he was not holding Leia, he would've scratched his head in confusion. "Thanks anyway."

The rebel this time didn't answer.

She disappeared for a moment behind some long, velvety white curtains, and when she came back, she had an astromech droid with her.

"Lay her down," she commanded Han. In any other situation he would've laughed at her for ordering him around, but he owed her his life, and the request was not so crazy- while his arms were growing tired.

With supreme delicacy, he laid her down on the shiny floor.

"K-2, scan her," the rebel ordered her droid. After reading the report, she didn't smile neither frowned, so Han had to ask:

"What do you think? Will she be alright?"

"She's just bruised," she said, carelessly.

"The freaking ceiling fell on her head!" he cried. "Your stupid droid must be broken, or you're lying, or—"

"Hey, hey," the rebel interrupted him. "Shut up. She's not going to die. She's as lucky as you are, Solo. The cell in which you were is the only room in this temple not built thousands of years ago. It is the only room that wasn't built with hard stone, which is why it fell, and why Leia is still alive."

"Oh," Han seemed relaxed. "Wait," he then said. "This is a temple?"

"A Sith temple. I mean not anymore but at some point it was. And this," she looked around the wide surroundings. "Is the Throne Room. Grand, isn't it?"

Han grinned; he was starting to lose interest in her words. "Why are you helping us?" he asked.

Her blue eyes reflected scorn and resentment. "It's none of your business. You can accept or refuse the help."

"Alright," he cleared his throat. "I accept it."

"Wise choice."

Leia started to moan again, she moved around and muttered things Han couldn't understand. He tried to approach her but the rebel stopped him with a word, without looking at either of them.

"She's in pain," Han argued.

"Yes," the rebel accepted nonchalantly. "Leave her."

In spite the fact she had just saved his life, Han was starting to dislike her. He reached over to the princess anyway.

He put his hand on her shoulder, he thought he did it very carefully and slowly, but when the princess shrieked in pain, he coiled back.

The rebel grinned at him, not particularly for Leia's pain, but more in an "I told you" manner.

"She's a Sith," the rebel then said. "They thrive in pain. This is actually good for her."

"Who told you such a stupid idea?" Han snarled.

"One must know well their enemies," the rebel's face darkened in an odd manner. Han could almost tell it was vengefully.

"Why do you think of her as your enemy?"

The rebel rubbed her eyes in a tired manner. "I never said 'her'."

"So you meant… the Emperor?"

"It's never been well concealed that he's a Sith Lord."

"Whatever, girl. Listen, are you sure we should stay here? Shouldn't we, like, try to run away?"

"Yes, but not yet."

"When, then?"

"When the battle's over."

"When will that be?"

"I don't know," she said between clenched teeth, clearly out of patience and weary from his questions and conversation. Han suddenly felt like a child with all his questions. For a moment he felt as annoying as C-3PO.

Thinking about the droid got him thinking about his Wookiee friend, then about his ship. He wanted to leave the rebel base and that accursed planet he didn't even know what was called. He couldn't stand looking at the rebel's careless face, especially when she knew their situation so well, much better than him. But maybe that's why she was so calm? She knew there was not much they could do.

Han knew that too and after kicking himself, he stopped worrying so much.


	19. Wasteland

Chapter XIX: Wasteland

The smuggler didn't even realize when he fell asleep, which is why he was so startled after the rebel so rudely woke him up. "Come on, you bum we have to get out of here," she said in a dry voice as she kicked him.

"How long have I been asleep?" Han asked, passing a hand across his face.

"About an hour and a half," she answered.

"Oh," he complained. "I feel it was about five minutes."

He sat and rubbed his tired face, he regarded the rebel, and then the princess.

"Who's going to wake up Sleeping Beauty?" the rebel asked finally with less harshness, she almost seemed amused.

Han was going to do that, but the rebel went ahead of him and kicked the princess's back. Leia woke up screaming, instantly getting up, looking around for the person she was going to kill.

"You?" she said staring at the rebel. "You..!"

"Me, Leia," she nodded. "Hurry, _Daughter of Vader_ , we haven't all day!"

By instinct, the princess reached for the hilt of her lightsaber, which prompted her to groan furiously when she remembered they had taken it from her. She had never wanted to kill a person more than at that moment. With more confusion that she would've liked to feel, Leia lifted her hand in an attempt to break the rebel's neck.

"Leia," she heard, and that masculine voice caused all anger to be vanished. All her focus went to him.

"Han!" she cried, running to his side. "You're alive!"

"Very much," he said, seemingly unmoved by her emotion. "And it's not thanks to you, princess."

The princess's smile was erased. "What?"

He pointed at the rebel. "She saved us."

Leia shook her head. "You're lying! What—what happened?"

"Too much to explain it now. Just know she helped us and we still have to get out of here."

"The stormtroopers…" she said, shaking her head. "They lost? They didn't see me? What happened?"

"I don't know," he said. "We've been hiding this whole time. I don't know the outcome of the battle."

"Hiding!" she cried, almost ashamed. "But why didn't I…" she then put her hands on her head, feeling the pain and remembering the last time she was conscious. "Oh, right…"

"Are you?" he approached her. "You look terrible."

She blushed at his comment. She wished for a mirror to see if it was true, but without looking at her face she knew it had to be. She saw her dusty and dirty hands and felt mortified, just imagining what her hair and face looked like. Her embarrassment at least prompted her to ignore the pain her body was in.

"The stormtroopers saw you, Leia," the rebel said. "But Captain Solo wouldn't let them take you."

Leia immediately turned questioning eyes on Han, who was trying fruitlessly to appear relaxed, his cheeks going red under his tan skin.

He shrugged. "They would've killed me had I not kept you in my arms."

Leia knew that to be true.

Wanting to not dwell too much on the subject, she looked around her surroundings.

"So we're out of the rebel base?" she asked.

"Not yet," Han answered. "It's been a couple hours since you fell 'asleep', so maybe the way is clear? Should we risk it?"

"Yes!" Leia said. "Come on."

She would've leaded the way, if only she could tell one wall from the other.

She stopped, embarrassed.

"After me," the rebel said, her mouth almost twisted into a smile. Her little droid walking by her side.

"Han," Leia said. "Where's Threepio?"

"I don't know," he answered tiredly.

"Where's Chewie?"

"I don't know…"

"Are they—"

"I don't know!" he cried.

She looked down, sadly and without the energy to even scold him for yelling at her.

Han sighed, hating life, and approached her. He took Leia's hand and they walked behind the rebel and droid.

The rebel opened the doors by inserting some code she got from the droid, and as they waited, Leia asked the rebel her name. Like she expected, she was ignored.

* * *

Leia's mouth almost dropped, shocked and sickened by the scene before her.

It was obvious the battle was over, the smell and sight of death showing it perfectly to her.

Though they tried, it was impossible for them to walk without accidently stepping on some corpse; it was hard not to slip on the mess and ruins.

Han felt the small hand he was holding tremble, he was curious about it but he knew better than to point it out.

"So… who won?" Han asked in a tone that perhaps was trying to relieve the tension. Neither the woman nor the girl found it relieving at all. They continued to walk, hopelessly.

"Won?" Leia said, unaware of how she was venting her personal thoughts, her voice sounding strange amidst nervous laughter. "Did _anyone_ win?"

The remains of the rebel base looked all but victorious. Even though she had grown to hate the place, since it was a mark of treason, she couldn't help the depression of looking at it destroyed. It already seemed ancient and worn, now… it was almost nothing.

Seriously, did anyone win? How could either side claim victory after such destruction—such pointless destruction!

She fought her thoughts but they reached her nonetheless.

Leia was no stranger to violence, to fights, to death.

Her Sith training had seen about that.

But there was something different about this violence.

While Anakin trained her and Luke, he would give them a lightsaber, which was like an art form. It was never pointless. It made them powerful.

The dangerous situations in which her father had put them seemed like child's play compared to this… actual real life. War.

The Sith training… The Force… The Dark Side… it all had sense and meaning. But, this? She could think and think about it for the rest of her life and still she wouldn't ever see the point of war.

Without realizing it, Leia's views on war became almost identical to the ones of Padmé Amidala.

The princess stopped her pacing when her foot accidently touched the face of a fallen rebel. A young boy who never got to be a man. The one who's last sight was Solo holding the princess. "They wanted me," Leia said, quietly. "They didn't have to destroy this place. I could've gone at any time… I was never really a prisoner."

Could that be guilt in her voice?

How was that possible when she had wished for the rebels' deaths!

She now was in front of a stormtrooper armor, unable to see the dead man inside it. "Stormtroopers are good soldiers… they didn't have to die tonight," she sighed. "They could've lived and continue to protect the galaxy…"

The sound of a mocking laugh caught her attention, interrupting her haunting thoughts and sad words.

"Excuse me?" she asked the rebel. "What's so funny?"

The woman raised her head, high. "Do you really believe that or are you mocking the fallen rebels, Leia?"

There she goes… _damn rebel scum_! Leia's hate for the rebels resurfaced. She ran to her, standing face to face, her anger growing at the fact that she was not scaring the rebel in the slightest. "Of course I believe that!" Leia cried, incensed. "They're worthy men! They risk their lives every day to keep the galaxy safe! Safe from—your kind!"

"My kind?" the rebel acted oblivious like a child.

"Traitors! Criminals! Rebels—"

"Listen, child!" the rebel finally lost all patience and raised her voice with as much anger as the princess. "I'm getting pretty damn tired of all your babbling. You may insult me, attack me, do all your mighty tittle as Amidala and Vader's daughter allows you. But you will not demean the cause I've been dedicating my life for the last five years! I've fought, I've killed, I've lost too much for the rebellion; and I will do it forever, as always as the chance of freeing the galaxy from your parents is there! I might die trying but I don't care."

Leia was struggling to find a comeback. It was hard to process the rebel's words. "So you want the Republic back? You want corruption, lies and deceit to be back?"

"I am not the Republic's biggest fan, either, Leia. This isn't my first war…"

From a distance, Han was watching them argue with a hard frown on his face.

"The Clone Wars were even more violent than this Civil War," the rebel went on. "I was only a child then… All my life I've seen the galaxy being in turmoil. I want to see peace!"

"And causing a war is going to accomplish that?" the princess snarled.

"It just might. And we didn't start it."

"Of course you did! My father is stern; he might not be the softest person in the galaxy. But he is powerful enough to take care of it. Who else could do such a job? Why are you so against him that you would want to risk your life just to see him out of power?"

The rebel watched the princess for a long time, Leia thought she had gotten through her and won the argument; till she saw a sudden shock and emotion on the older woman's face.

"Oh Leia!" she cried, not an ounce of harshness in her voice. "You really are clueless!"

Somehow, the princess knew she wasn't trying to offend her.

A long silence again invaded them.

Han had to break in. "Listen, girls," he said, tiredly. "Can we get out of here?"

Leia said nothing, the rebel nodded, and both the princess and Solo went after her and of course, the little droid that never left her.

* * *

As they walked through the jungle, morning arrived in Yavin 4.

They went in silence, almost without acknowledging the persons around them. It was Han Solo who led the way now, and though she was not watching his face, Leia could sense his great fear and worry. In the middle of so much tragedy, Leia was somewhat amused at the fact that he was stressing over his ship. No matter how useful she had proven to be, the Millennium Falcon was still a bit of a piece of junk for the princess. She smirked for a second, thinking of how offended Han would be if he could hear her thoughts, then she realized she should also be freaking out about the Falcon. If the rebels or imperials found and took the ship, how the hell were they ever going to get out of there?!

When they reached the place in which the Falcon had landed and been left stranded, Han and Leia finally looked at each other, with eyes as wide as the smiles that attacked their young faces.

They screamed in joy and hugged so tightly the rebel had to look away.

Leia's feet were no longer touching the ground, and around her waist she felt Han's strong hands, clasping her as if she were the most precious thing in the world. She leaned to kiss his cheek and in response she obtained a hearty kiss from his lips. After a few moments in which they took long breaths, he finally put her down, without ever letting go of her.

"I don't see the fuzz," the rebel commented. "I never saw such a piece of junk."

Leia didn't need to see the man that was holding her to know he was frowning sulkily. She cleared her throat and she spoke, more lighthearted than she had in days: "Hey, lady, don't insult the Falcon. It's the fastest ship in the galaxy." The princess felt Han's grip tighten.

"Is it though?"

"It's the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs!" Leia could feel Han's smile behind her.

"And it's the ship that's gonna save your life," Han spoke in his usual relax and cocky manner.

Before they could take any step to enter the Falcon, Leia stopped Han by putting her hand on his chest. "Wait, Han," she said.

He looked around. "What, sweetheart?" she took no notice on the endearing way he spoke to her, neither did Han, almost as if they always had been that way with each other.

She closed her eyes, her face lost all expression. "Someone's in the ship. I can feel a presence," she whispered.

Solo reached for his blaster, as did the rebel.

"Wait here, I'm going to inspect," Leia proposed.

"Now, I don't think you should," Han protested.

"I agree," the rebel said, surprising them. "Solo, come, we will go."

Leia stopped both with the Force. "I'll be right back. Don't worry, I don't feel like killing."

Han was shocked to see the rebel's face looked as worried as he felt, as Leia entered the Falcon alone.

For a few moments there was silence.

Then Han felt his heart stop as Leia's voice was heard, screaming loudly: "HAN!"

He was in the ship before he even realized. He stood on the entrance with his blaster pointing at the individual behind the princess, who had her wrapped in his big arms. Han's mouth fell to the floor as he saw who it was. He lowered his weapon and walked to them, trying hard to not look so embarrassed. Leia was also struggling, but at containing her laughter.

"Captain Solo!" C-3PO cried, excited. "How good to see you!"

The Wookiee cried even more excited, expressing a similar happy feeling.

Chewbacca let go of the princess to go run and hug his best friend.

"Alright," Han said, embarrassed. "Stop it; we were only separated for a few hours. Don't be such a baby!" Leia could feel his happiness and it filled her heart. After such awful experience, she couldn't believe how warm her heart felt. "So," Han said. "How the hell…?"

"Oh, we couldn't leave without you," C-3PO said. "I never even suggested it."

The Wookiee growled.

"All right, maybe once," 3PO corrected. "But I knew you would come with the princess. How good to see you both!"

"Likewise," Han said, surprising himself as he knew that to be true.

Leia smiled at them. "Threepio, promise me you will never tell anyone you escaped the rebel base before us. Okay? You too, Chewie."

The Wookiee again walked to her to wrap her in a hug, she let him, happily. Definitely too happy for Vader's apprentice.

She was unaware of how much her company took her farther and farther from the Dark Side. She was feeling complete; she thought that wonderfulness would last forever, till her eyes found those of the rebel, which instantly reminded her of her present situation.

She grabbed Han's arm and brought him closer, taking him into a remote corner so they could speak in private.

"What are we going to do about the rebel?" she asked, praying that he would either answer kill her or leave her here.

"We will help her, of course," Han said to her disappointment.

"Why?" Leia questioned.

"She saved us!"

"Yeah, so?"

"If we abandon her, wouldn't you later regret it?"

"I'm pretty sure I could live with it. And so would you."

"Yes, but—"

"Han Solo," the rebel called. "I want to speak to you."

Han looked at Leia in an apologetic manner, and then he walked to the rebel.

"What is she doing here?" C-3PO asked Leia.

"I haven't the slightest idea," she responded, clenching her teeth.

After a few moments, Han return to her side, he had a strange grin on his face. Leia couldn't help clenching her teeth again as she said, "Well?"

Han scratched his face. He softly laid a finger on her bottom lip, looking at her more lovingly than he ever had. "We're gonna keep her for a very short time."

She slapped his hand away. "Why?"

"Princess, you know we can't leave her here…"

"I know," she sighed. Though she had thought and said it, she never really meant it.

"We're just gonna give her a ride, drop her, and you'll never have to see her again."

Her face showed defeat. "Where exactly will we be going?"

"Corellian System…"

Her eyes went wide, then they narrowed and looked down. "Are you—are you planning on staying there?" Doubt hurt her heart.

He put each hand on either cheek of her pretty face. "No. Of course not."

She smiled faintly. "Which planet?"

"She doesn't know yet…"

"Is she expecting you to circle your ship around the system till she can make up her mind?"

He laughed softly. "Why does that sound familiar?"

She gently banged her hands on his chest, he catch both between his own. "So you're cool with it?"

"I'm alright with it."

"Let's go then."

Once again he put his arms around her. As they held each other, Leia saw that the rebel was staring at them. "Come, rebel," she said as calmly as she could. "You might sit now. You must be tired."

The rebel's usually expressionless face gained a quality of shock and surprise. "What!" she cried. "You accepted? You aren't going to kill me, Sith Lady? You continue to amaze me, _Daughter of Vader_."

Han pressed the princess tightly, afraid that she would hurt the rebel. But Leia was seemingly at ease. She even smiled at the rebel. "I'm not going to kill you. Not _yet_ , that is."

"Well then," the rebel said. "I would advise you to mentally prepare for what you might later see, Leia. One of the many times you shocked me, was when you showed your dread at seeing the destruction the imperial forces caused in the rebel base. So I don't think you will like where we're going. You think last night's battle was bad? Child, it is only a small taste of what the Empire can do. If we reach Corellia and find it's still there, you will see an actual wasteland."

Her words affected not just the princess, but also Solo. Leia saw him getting apart from her again, and unwilling to allow any distance between them, she remained calm and collected. Feeling a million emotions within.

When they were flying across the immensity that is space, Leia took advantage of the privacy she and the rebel had. C-3PO was deactivated, Han and Chewbacca were flying the ship; Leia thought she had her chance to let the rebel know she hadn't yet gotten the best of her.

She watched her lying on the floor next to her droid.

"Rebel," Leia said in a calm voice.

"Yes?"

"Do not mention my father again, or I will forget all you've done for me and break your neck without a second thought."

* * *

Darth Vader and Queen Amidala walked around the ruins that were once the hidden rebel base in the Fourth Moon of Yavin.

His black leather boots and her bloody-red stiletto heels getting stained from all the dirt.

Stormtroopers marched around every corner of the place, never finding anything other than lifeless bodies from both sides. No ships, no droids, no information… no princess.

"They escaped?" Padmé couldn't remain using the usual Amidala voice, that cold, imperial, and monotonous voice. This was the tone of a heartbroken mother. "They escaped!"

Vader rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Where is the report?" he asked a commander.

Before he could take it, Padmé had her hands on it.

"None of the living stormtroopers claim to have seen her here," she said, releasing air to maintain her voice steady. "What if it wasn't true? Anakin, maybe they never had her?"

He turned his back on her. "When I suggested that, you thought I was crazy and blind—"

"Now is not the time to fight! Listen, maybe she escaped before the imperials arrived? Maybe… I don't even know what to think!"

It was hard for her to keep a strong countenance in front of the troopers when she was so broken inside. The Emperor could tell, but he didn't have the time to comfort her.

He was busy. He was trying. Really hard.

He had to not look at Padmé. She could too easily take all of his attention.

He was looking for his daughter's presence. Any trace of her that the Force could give him… oh he had to not fall into despair! He had to keep his focus and listen to the Force. Be mindful, Anakin… just be—

"Leia," he suddenly said.

"What?" Padmé questioned, confused.

He still paid no attention to his wife; he walked, as if he knew where she was. As if she was standing there calling out to him.

He stopped, opened his eyes widely, and frowned as he stood over what was Leia's cell.

"She was here," he pronounced. "And not long ago… she was here!"

"How do you know?" Padmé asked now accompanying him.

"There was a room here," he said, and keeping control was becoming harder. "This is where they held her prisoner!"

Padmé paled and looked around the mess. "This was a room?"

"It broke apart. Look, the ceiling fell off…"

"Oh!"

He closed his eyes again, this time to blink away tears. Then he walked again.

"Anakin!" Padmé called him but received no response.

She had to follow him, as he entered another room. It was dark, which caused Padmé to hold onto him for support and guidance, which she didn't like when he was in such a Vader mood.

Even in the darkness, he walked without tripping.

As she was alone for a few moments, and as no one could see her, Padmé allowed a few tears to escape her eyes. She had such pain! Such frustration! If only they'd arrived sooner. She might have caught her daughter. She might have seen her one time again.

Oh how much she missed Leia! And Luke! She just wanted to see her children again.

As she sorrowfully thought of her long-lost children, a light finally illuminated the room. But it was not one that could make her see much better. And more than a light, it was a fiery glow; it was bright, no doubt, loud and powerful. It was a vibrant red.

The red of a Sith lightsaber, but it was not the one she had seen so often be used recently. It wasn't Vader's.

"Leia," Anakin muttered and his pain finally broke his voice. "Leia's lightsaber."

* * *

The Emperor and Empress of the Skywalker Empire walked out of the former rebel base with a little more information than they had entered, but certainly not any more at ease, if anything, their pain increased excessively.

Before entering the Executer, Vader stared for a last time at the building he was sure he'll never see again. Thinking that probably no one would ever enter it again.

"Clever," he said with bitter irony. "They chose a former Sith temple for a hiding place. Damn clever rebels!"

As all sign of life left, the temple was finally left deserted again.

The Great Temple, they harmed it but they could not destroy it. It was still standing.


	20. Corellia

Chapter XX: Corellia

"I have to admit I'm having second thoughts," the rebel said sitting behind Han Solo. "This ship is not as useless as it looked…"

He smiled at her. "Right? We will soon reach the Corellian system. Which Brother do you want to visit first?"

She sighed. "Whichever we find…" she muttered.

"What?" he faced her with a hard grin.

"I mean…How about the Eldest Brother?"

"Nice place."

For the entire long journey from Yavin 4 to the Corellian system, the rebel had been most of Han's company, apart from Chewbacca. She had talked to him, surprising him as she demonstrated she could have actual conversations, and while Han would've preferred the princess's usual sassy and haughty comments, as well as her recent kisses, he was quite enjoying the rebel's company.

Leia hated to see them together, but she had been unable of stopping it. For most of the trip, she had been sleeping. She couldn't help it, she was just so tired, and she didn't know why.

Her hair and clothes weren't so messy, as she had cleaned herself, but she didn't exactly look like Princess Leia. Her clothes were worn and ripped. Her face looked all but her usual freshness and sweetness. It looked long, sleepy and tired. Her usually braided hair was rebelliously loose. She sat next to C-3PO, too tired to stop the scene, nevertheless wishing she would.

"Do you think she's very pretty, Threepio?" she asked her friend as they watched Solo and the rebel from a distance.

"She's quite beautiful," C-3PO answered truthfully.

Somehow, at that moment, that rebel woman looked more put together and stronger than the princess. Her deep black hair was probably long, but at the moment, it was well concealed in a tight bun. Her clothes weren't very expensive looking, not even very feminine, yet to her mature female body they did wonders. Her skin was very smooth, too. Not pale at all, but very fair. Her face was nothing too extraordinary, except for her eyes: ocean blue and so very bright.

"I don't like her," Leia muttered, her face resting on her hands while her elbows rested on her knees.

"I noticed," 3PO said.

"Do you?"

"Well, Your Majesty. She seems alright."

 _Traitor!_ "Do you think Han likes her?"

"Captain Solo seems to enjoy her company. I would say yes,"

 _I'll kill them!_ "I have to do something!"

"Like what, princess?"

Um, snap her neck? Pull her hair?

"We'll see."

Leia stood up, she set her eyes on the couple that was bothering her so much, but before she could reach them, her legs trembled till they failed her.

"Oh, Your Majesty!" C-3PO cried, worried.

Solo, the Wookiee and the rebel immediately turned their eyes as the sound of a body hitting the floor reached them.

"Chewie, keep it steady!" Han cried and ran to the princess.

He picked her up and helped her be seated. _At least I have his attention again_ … she thought amidst her faintness.

"What's wrong with you?" Han asked her. "You're becoming too accustomed to the floor, princess."

The rebel stood before them. "She looks terrible," she said.

Leia groaned, angrily.

"When was the last time you ate?" the rebel asked her.

Leia couldn't even remember. "I… I don't know."

"If I recall, you said you didn't eat at all in the rebel base. Did you?"

"No."

"Hmm," the rebel frowned. "How much have you eaten since we left?"

"Enough."

"It doesn't look like it."

"Well," Leia used the short and angry tone the rebel always seemed to cause in her. "It's not like there's a lot to eat here! We almost run out of food. Han and Chewie have to eat the most. They're flying this piece of—the Falcon. Even you need food. I'm fine."

"Leia, have you eaten at all?" the rebel pressed. There was actual concern in her voice.

Leia avoided her glance. It was almost as if Padmé were there scolding her.

"This is so stupid," Han then said. "Leia, me and Chewie can spend a long time without eating. You're a freaking princess! You shouldn't suffer like this."

"Well I am," she admitted before she could stop her words.

There was a silence, the rebel pulled something from her coat and handed it to Leia. It was rebel nutrition bar. Leia almost slapped it away.

"It does not taste very good," the rebel admitted. "But it will give you energy and it will keep you from fainting."

Leia grabbed the bar almost unwillingly, she took a bite and she didn't even recognize its terrible taste. It was so good to have some food in her mouth…

She realized how much her stomach was aching; begging her for more.

Since she finished it all too quickly, the rebel could tell the bar did nothing but increase Leia's hunger. She gave her another one. This time Leia could tell the taste was awful, yet she couldn't stop eating it.

She almost felt like crying when the rebel didn't offer her another one.

* * *

"Well princess, this is your time to be useful again," Han said when they were asked by the imperial forces if they had permission to land in Corellia.

The princess stood up, and she walked oh so weakly!

"This is princess Leia of the Galactic Empire," she said slowly, her voice sounding like that of a stranger. Some tired, sad stranger, not Anakin and Padmé's strong daughter.

Of course, Han was wrong, for Leia was not helping them at all. And the imperials were lying, as they never needed to ask them if they had permission to land. No one had it. This planet was, like the rebel had sadly said it, a wasteland. No one could go in and out, if he weren't from the Imperial military.

The Force warned Leia, but she reacted too slowly.

Han saw her tired face become restless. The gest on her face was one of dread, of absolute tiredness and unpreparedness for what was about to happen.

"Han!" she cried when she found her strength. "They are going to fire at us!"

"Of course they are!" the rebel cried amidst clenched teeth.

"Can't you stop them?" Leia heard and there was so much commotion she couldn't tell if the question came from Han or the rebel.

She tried again. "This is princess Leia of the Galactic Empire! Stop firing at this ship. Gentlemen, this is an imperial order!"

Her words meant nothing. Much like in Tatooine, no one believed she was the princess.

Princess Leia was supposedly kidnapped, for her to just casually appear in a planet so conflicted as Corellia, was more than unlikely, it seemed impossible.

Leia wished she could do something other than watch as Han, Chewie and the rebel defended the Falcon, while C-3PO stood crying things in fear next to the other droid.

But she was tired. _How long will life be like this?_ She wondered. _Oh when will this end!_

" _Leia!"_ She heard and that made her wake up. She turned her face to see who was speaking to her, but everyone was still too busy in their own thing to call her. _"Leia!"_ She heard again and now she thought maybe she had gone mad. " _Use the Force, sister!"_

Her heart quite literally stopped.

Was that Luke calling out to her? Could it be him? After so long finally reaching out to her? It was not possible—was it?

" _Where are you?"_ she cried through their Force connection, one she had thought was dead. _"Please tell me, where have you gone!"_

" _I don't want you to die,"_ Was the only response she got.

She felt the floor underneath her waver, her whole world shook—but it wasn't her world, it was the Falcon.

"Enough is enough!" she cried, anger giving her the strength she was lacking.

Like with Boba Fett, she used the Force to keep the imperials from firing at them. But unlike the bounty hunter, these imperials weren't so lucky.

Her frustration at her brother, her dread and annoyance at life, her anger at being once again persecuted… it was all too much! All dark emotions mixed within her until they were nothing but anger and fear, and with those strong feelings fueling her—Princess Leia grew powerful.

 _Them or us,_ she thought desperately as she reached into the Force, the Dark Side of the Force, to feel each presence inside the enemies' ship, slowly and almost too gladly snapping their necks.

She had never killed like that.

She didn't even know such action was possible.

Han watched in shock as the imperial ship crashed into Coronet City.

He knew better than to land there. So for a while, he flew the Millennium Falcon around the city, till they were out of it; they hid the ship in Corellia's covered in snow lonely mountains.

* * *

There was an unusual quiet surrounding every passenger inside the Millennium Falcon.

There was no smile. Not a trace of laughter. No friendliness, not even amongst those who were friends—even less in the ones who were almost lovers.

The princess's strange countenance was affecting all of them, maybe in different ways, but certainly they all suffered with her.

Leia was on the floor, staring at nothing, focusing, trying, seeking… trying and seeking yet always failing and never finding.

She wanted to bring back her connection to her twin brother. She wanted to reach him again, she wanted for Luke to allow her in again, but it was all useless. She could not find him; _he_ had to reach for her again. It was all in his power and that was just another thing that added to her anger and frustration.

" _Luke."_

" _Luke."_

" _Luke."_

She was almost begging.

"Luke!" she at last cried, not through the Force, but in her loud voice, calling everyone's attention on her, especially Han Solo.

She dropped her glance, embarrassed. She hoped no one would speak to her, but of course, someone did.

The first person she would expect to talk to her was Han, but the ship's captain had turned his back on her, confusing her, as she had believed they were growing so close. She couldn't imagine how much she distanced herself from him as she pronounced her brother's name with so much despair.

"Leia," the rebel said, in a quiet whisper. "Have you talked to your brother lately?"

Never in a million years would she had expected such question; and from the rebel of all people? What did she care?

She shook her head.

"Is he…" the rebel spoke still quietly. "Is he alive?"

Leia's eyes opened wide.

"Why do you ask?" Leia asked, narrowing her eyes in confusion.

"I just… I just want to know," was all the rebel offered.

The princess tried to invade the rebel's mind in hope to find some answer, but her mind was far from weak.

"Do you know him?" Leia asked, thinking she already knew the answer to be negative, as there was no way Luke could ever know a rebel.

Her heart beat rapidly as the rebel took a long time to answer.

But when she did answer, she just dodged the question. "I also have a brother," she said. "I haven't seen him in a long time. Since the siege."

Leia's confusion was growing. "How did you," she asked, her voice trembling though she didn't know why. "Survive? If it was so bad… how could you escape intact?"

"Intact?" the rebel's old bitterness and sarcasm returned. "I was not left intact. I mean, physically I recovered quickly since I only got a few bruises and scars. But I… I have not been the same ever since."

"How did you survive?" Leia repeated her question. "How did you escape Corellia last time?"

The rebel let out a deep, long, sad sigh. "A Jedi," she at last confessed. "A Jedi saved me."

Leia was suddenly attacked by an odd feeling, one she could never describe. She felt it deep in her belly; it wasn't the usual soring at being hungry, it was something else… something like fear, but not quite.

"Do you hate the Jedi as much as the Emperor does?" the rebel asked, after what seemed to be hours of silence.

"Yes," Leia quickly said, startled as she realized her answer was mechanical, and not something she actually felt.

"There isn't anything I admire more in the galaxy," the rebel said. "Than the spirit of the Jedi. The order, though long gone, continues to save lives. You do not hate them, Leia. You can't, because you don't know them."

"I know them," Leia muttered, rising from the floor, unaware of how her voice was breaking as tears escaped her sweet brown eyes. "I know them!" she reinforced. "They abused their power. They were always hungry for more! They betrayed the Senate and the galaxy… they—they!"

"My dear," the rebel looked at her with pity. "That is our Emperor speaking. You were only about to be born… you can't possibly imagine all that actually happened!"

"Stop talking," Leia didn't command, she almost… begged?

"You were born as the world seemed to end! You were lucky like that! You didn't have a mind of your own, or a heart to break. The Jedi had dedicated three entire years to the Clone Wars; they had given countless lives to the galaxy…"

"Stop talking."

"They risked everything. They gave everything!"

Han, the Wookiee and droids stayed where they were far from them, yet all eyes were on the woman and girl.

"The Emperor—the Old Emperor, was a Sith Lord. It was never revealed. The Sith and Jedi were enemies. It was one or the other, and oh! Your father won! The galaxy lost! We lost all freedom, all security, all hope till the Jedi came back…"

The rebel's words died before she could finish speaking, an invisible grip now was wrapped around her neck, preventing her from speaking, breathing, living…

"Leia!" Han cried, appalled. "What are you doing?"

She didn't want to scare him, she didn't want him to fear her at all, but she couldn't stop it, she wanted to kill the rebel.

The rebel crumbled to the floor, she gasped for air, she closed her eyes…

"Leia, she saved you!" Han cried, now standing next to her.

The statement made her react, just as she was about to truly end a life. "Rebel," she pronounced. "You never told me your name. I demand you to do it now!"

"Do you…" the rebel breathed on the floor. "Do you want to know the name of your next victim… Sith Lady?"

Leia kneeled by her side so that they could be face to face. "Your name," she said menacingly. "And the name of the Jedi that saved you."

"Will you try to find and kill him?" the rebel groaned. "I thought that was Darth Vader's job—"

Leia slapped her viciously, leaving a reddish palm mark on the rebel's white cheek. "I told you never to mention him again! Answer my questions!"

"My name," she said, out of breath and rubbing her cheek. "Will have no impact on you. I'm Jule…"

"Is that really your name?" Leia pressed.

"You can choose to believe me or not."

"Have you any family?"

"Just, as I told you, my brother."

"What's his name?"

The rebel took a deep breath; Leia noticed the words came with much pain. "Harxsh…" the name escaped her lips at the same time tears escaped her eyes.

"And the Jedi?"

The rebel looked down for a moment. "K-2!" she cried, calling her droid.

Leia was incensed by that. "You will answer my question," Leia paced in circles around her.

"I will," Jule nodded. "But I would like to live after answering you."

Leia passed her hands across her face, then she pulled at her own hair in frustration. "I will not kill you…" she muttered after taking a long breath.

The rebel got in a more comfortable sitting position next to her droid. "Hmm, you think."

Everyone waited for the rebel's actions, a palpable tension covering the air. Leia realized how much the rest of her company were fearing her at the moment, and that pained her. The only person she wanted to fear her in the ship was the one who looked at her with disregard; she tried to soften her features, particularly since Han was watching her, but she simply couldn't.

"Do you fear the truth, at all, Leia?" the rebel at last spoke again.

Leia was silenced.

"I would," she said and a blue hologram started projecting for everyone's view.


	21. Goodbye Blue Sky

Chapter XXI: Goodbye Blue Sky

Princess Leia let out a long breath of relief as she saw the blue hologram coming from the rebel's droid. Her mind had imagined something too wild for it to ever be true. So she wasn't even mad by the rebel's actions, she was more than anything, confused. What was the woman trying to do to her?

"Those are my parents," Leia stated, never losing that confused frown from her face. "Why are you showing me this?"

The hologram showed Queen Amidala and Darth Vader; the Queen gave a speech while her husband stood tall by her side, quiet as dead, looking like a Dark Knight with his black garments and cold demeanor.

"Keep watching," the rebel sighed.

Leia did as she said. She observed, attentively; at first feeling warm love inside, having been so long since she last saw her family. She was enjoying hearing her mother's voice, watching her pretty face, as well as her father's strong countenance, but when she actually focused beyond mom and dad, she thought something was off. She couldn't really explain it… but something didn't feel right.

One of the first things that bothered her was Padmé's voice. It didn't sound like her melodic sweetness at all. It was strong, determinate, somewhat… dry; monotonous, cold, and almost—cruel. That was Queen Amidala alright.

And Anakin, the Emperor, didn't look like the usual image she had of him. Granted, Leia often thought him intimidating, certainly someone you wouldn't want to anger, but in this odd blueness, he looked absolutely—terrifying. There was a dangerous edge to his evil yellow glance. A cold shuddering sensation in those around him, he looked like—Leia hated herself for a moment as the thought reached her head, but he looked like death itself was manifesting in the form of a human shadow. That was Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith, no doubt.

The old feeling, that one similar to fear, accumulated in her belly again, making her face look displeased. She wished she didn't see them like that; she wanted to think of Anakin and Padmé as her family, not political figures. And she could not tear her eyes from their image.

She tried to focus on other things besides them, so she looked at their surroundings, and almost instantly, she regretted it, as that action planted more seeds of confusion within her.

"Is that Coruscant?" Princess Leia muttered, shaking her head, confusion still reining her voice. "Are they in the Imperial Senate?" she wasn't really asking, but it sounded like she was. In truth, that seemed very unlikely.

In all her life, Leia hadn't ever known Padmé to be anywhere in the galaxy except Naboo. She was Queen Amidala after all! She was patriotic for her home-world. She never left her beautiful green and prosperous planet. That was more than her birth place, it was the place her family usually was in. Why would Padmé be in the Capital?

"That has to be wrong," Leia shook her head. "My mother never leaves Naboo!"

"And you find that okay?" came the response, unexpected as always, from Jule, the rebel.

"What?" Leia muttered.

"Do you think that's okay?" the rebel repeated. "Doesn't she, the Queen, have the responsibility as the Emperor's wife and second person with the most power and influence, to take care of the entire galaxy, not just her rich home-world?"

Leia redden in anger as again the rebel left her speechless.

"She seems angry," came the voice of the human man aboard the Falcon.

Leia fought every part of herself to not turn to face him, knowing he would find her displeasing.

Han was very much correct, though not entirely. It was true that Padmé sounded angry—enraged. In reality, she was deeply afraid. Yet her words made it seem like she was the one inflicting fear.

Queen Amidala was speaking sternly at the Imperial Senate, harshly stating that the Empire would use any means necessary to _crush_ the rebellion. That threat probably shouldn't have shocked Leia as much as it did, as she herself would've employed similar words. But they felt very odd coming from Padmé—again, it felt off—wrong… unreal.

Had she heard those words from the Emperor, she would've remained fine, but as it is, she heard such harshness from her dear mother, the one person she always heard described by her father as an angel… and she had thought it true. Padmé was always so good, so kind, just so sweet… nothing like the strong, angry woman who was sick of the Rebel Alliance.

The hologram came from the day after Krennic broke the news of the princess's capture by the Rebel Forces.

"What's your point?" Leia asked, exhausted after her mother's speech became too dull and political for her liking.

"I wanted you to see a small glimpse of our rulers' true nature." Was the rebel's answer.

"And you were afraid I would kill you for showing me that?" Leia almost laughed.

"No," the rebel wouldn't allow any softness to return to her. "I have other things to show you…"

Han cursed, getting their attention. "Not another political speech!" he cried, annoyed.

The rebel's face gained a somber quality that shocked even the Sith's apprentice.

"This is from the siege," she muttered as she pressed several of her droid's buttons. "Of… when I got rescued."

Leia didn't realize but she started holding her breath.

She recognized, amidst blue blurriness, a dark city alley, and a frightened female face, one she knew was Jule's.

 _The woman was fighting, not just for her life, but for countless others; alongside the other rebel soldiers, Jule was skilled with a blaster, and she had already killed about a dozen stormtroopers, while the siege had started scarcely fifteen minutes ago._

 _She already looked bruised, there was much blood coming from a wound on her left shoulder, yet she would not stop; they'd have to kill her before she'd ever surrender to the Empire, and as much as she tried to hide it, her face showed she thought they were gonna succeed._

 _They were going to. There was no doubt._

 _The Alliance needed help; needed a miracle; it needed… hope._

Leia blinked many times and shook he head, fighting the images her mind—not her eyes— was showing her.

 _More stormtroopers appeared before her and her rebel friends, they fired as mercilessly as she had done. She had to blink away tears as she saw some of her friends hadn't been so lucky, and were already lying on the ground, becoming another corpse for the statistics that would later be made._

 _She took cover and hid behind a large trash can—feeling less than the mess inside it. She felt so small, so unimportant, so weak… she almost wished the troopers would find their aim already and finish her existence._

 _But then… she thought of her brother, her only family… though he was now old enough to be a man, and he was an important asset to the Alliance, Jule couldn't help but to still think of him as her little brother. She had guarded him during the horrible times the Republic endured during the Clone Wars, and she certainly wouldn't abandon him during this blasted Civil War._

 _But how could she help him? What was she, a poor girl from the low regions of Coruscant, against Darth Vader and his Galactic Empire? Against his army of stormtroopers? What difference could she make?_

 _Well, she had killed a number of imperial men who wouldn't ever get the chance to rob an innocent of his life. That was at least something, wasn't it?_

 _That's at least what the Alliance's Secret Weapon keeps telling her._

It was more than a hologram, Leia was almost sure… someone was putting the images in her head so that she could see them, as clearly as if she had been there witnessing it…

She could even feel the emotions of that dark awful night, she could hear Jule's deepest thoughts; unaware of how that wasn't even _one_ of the worsts nights caused by the powerful Anakin Skywalker…

 _Where is he, anyway? Jule felt frustrated as the loud sound of blasters rang in her ears. She, like every other member of the Alliance understood, or at least pretended to. He needed his time to train… to meditate… to keep himself in the Light, but as he was away, the rebels desperately needed their biggest and almost only hope._

 _The noise the battle brought was now the least thing bothering Jule, as the screams from civilians covered the air—it was enough, too much! She had to get out of there!_

 _She ran, took cover and fired, praying to the Force to allow her at least more time to be of use._

 _When she was exhausted, she comforted herself with the fact that she had killed a great number of imperials; prepared for what was about to come, she ran across the streets, defending the unfortunate civilians that got caught in the conflict. She was sure her time had come. She saw the fire coming directly at her, but startled at first, she saw how the blaster fire swooped towards every direction in the air but her own. Behind the reddish glow, she saw another one. One that was green like an emerald._

 _The Jedi dodged the fire swiftly and seemingly effortlessly with his lightsaber; he lifted his free hand and dragged a tall metallic wall across the street, putting it as a shield for the civilians to be safe from the violence; with the hand that held the green lightsaber, he continued dodging the fire, and slashing whatever enemy that came too close._

 _As he did all that, Jule remained where she was, on the floor on a corner, bleeding more than ever, nevertheless staring fascinated at the bright Force user. He was well concealed in thick black and brown robes; you could not see an ounce of his skin, not a single hair. Just the slim silhouette, not grand nor tall, but brave and heroic enough._

 _He ran to her and yelled, not particularly with anger but urgency, telling her to stand up and run behind him. He gave her a gloved hand and helped her, he defended her and himself as the battle intensified._

 _And how it intensified._

 _Where were all those troopers coming from? They seemed to rain from the sky!_

 _You could not see an ounce of street; it was all covered in white—the armors blinded the rebels and Jedi as they fought._

 _And then…_

 _The noise that followed caused the usually quiet Jule scream at the top of her lungs—yet her scream died behind the loud sound._

 _Even the Jedi, with all his calmness, looked troubled and afraid._

 _The bombing didn't last long but it felt like years for those poor people—any people, in Corellia._

The scream Leia released caused every passenger inside the Falcon to jump and turn pale. "Leia, what's wrong?" Han asked her but received no answer. She just put her hands on her ears; she shook her head, and wept fearfully, as she slowly descended to the floor.

 _Jule wasn't sure of how she was even alive anymore, she looked up and saw the stormtroopers as they marched around the city; she looked down and saw the countless dead bodies, from all ages, all sides, more than anything innocent ones._

 _She then realized she wasn't walking, someone was carrying her in strong arms. It was the Jedi._

"Leia, please!" Han cried. "Snap out of it, Princess! Leia! Leia!"

The princess curled on the floor, tears burning her eyes, her breathing loud and unnatural.

"Stop!" she begged. "Oh, please stop!"

"Leia," Han spoke softly but afraid. "It stopped minutes ago!"

She hid under his chest; she wrapped her arms around his waist, and just continued to cry. For some time, he allowed that strange action.

"Han," she said weakly when she could recover from the previous sights. "What did you see?"

"What?" he asked confused as he gently stroked her hair.

"What did you see in the hologram?" she pressed, madly.

He sighed and got on his knees, so that they could be face to face. He put each hand on her both cheeks. He laid his forehead on Leia's own. "Jule was firing at a bunch of stormtroopers; a cloaked Jedi with a green lightsaber appeared and saved her."

"That was all?"

"Yes, Leia," with closed eyes he kissed the top of her head.

"It wasn't very long."

"Less than forty seconds."

"What about the bombing?"

"What?"

"That wasn't recorded," the rebel interrupted.

Leia crumbled in Han's arms. "I want to go," she whispered at his ear. "I want to go home!"

"A lot of people do, _Princess_ ," the rebel dared defy her again. "And a lot, if not all, don't have a home anymore! When will Vader and Amidala worry for something other than themselves?"

Han held onto Leia, fearing her response at the rebel's words, but she continued her odd actions, crying on him, and grabbing him tightly.

"Leave me alone," was all that the princess could respond for the moment. "Rebel… Jule, leave me alone!"

The rebel showed as much mercy as was ever shown to her in her life. None!

"When will they leave us alone?" Jule said, narrowing her eyes, looking desperate and sad. Leia knew perfectly well who "they" were.

The princess freed herself from Han's arms and walked, slowly and weakly still, outside the Falcon.

* * *

"Where are you going?" Han said behind her.

"I just…" she stammered. "I need some fresh air. I want to look at the sky."

"Do you want me to go with you?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I want to be alone," she said in a restrained voice.

"Alright," he accepted and stood there watching her.

As the cool wind played with her hair, she stopped walking. "I—"she said without looking back, knowing he was still watching her. "I wouldn't mind if you come, actually."

He released a sad chuckle and soon enough he was by her side.

"I don't want to speak," she quickly said.

"I wasn't planning on conversing," he said, offering an arm she hastily took.

They gave a few steps.

"I miss Naboo," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I thought we weren't speaking," he teased, causing something close to a smile to form on her face.

"This planet was not always like this," she said, strangely.

"No," he agreed and sighed. "No, it wasn't. It looks and feels very different than what I remembered."

"Do you… do you blame me?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"What?" Han was confused. "Why would I do that?"

"The rebel does."

"I don't think so. She just hates imperials more than the average person—"

"People hate the Empire?" Leia stopped walking. "Han, do they?" her starry eyes haunted Han. "Do you?"

He cleared his throat, knowing lying was useless. "I am not their biggest fan," he admitted.

"Why not?" she cried.

Her tears stung him; he knew she could easily recognize a lie, so he tried a half-truth. "It really gets in the way of my… business," he tried a mischievous grin. "The Empire doesn't exactly love smugglers."

She looked no less pained. "My parents aren't evil," she then said.

Han pressed her closer to him. "We don't have to talk about them. You said you wanted to look at the sky? It's really clear now…"

"Nothing like Naboo, though. Have you ever been there?"

"No."

"Well, you're gonna be there soon," suddenly she sounded less sad. "I want to go home."

"Home…" Han muttered, and instead of looking at the princess, he stared ahead, contemplating Coronet City from afar.

After that there was silence, though much less distance between them.

* * *

"I was here three years ago," Leia said, her hand on her mouth, when they had reached the city.

"What the hell happened?" Han muttered, and he couldn't disguise his dread anymore—not even for the princess's feelings. But Leia couldn't blame him. Who could look at that wasteland and not feel anything? Even more so, a native Corellian?

He couldn't ease her pain and fear anymore. He couldn't disregard tragedy or act oblivious. He looked pained. Shocked. Afraid, even.

Not as much as the people on the streets, though.

"This can't be real," Leia muttered, pressing her head against Han's strong shoulder, trying to not see the destroyed streets, the fallen buildings… the endless parade of stormtroopers.

Usually, her first reaction upon seeing those trusty soldiers would be to feel ease, she would feel that no harm could come to her; she would feel protected.

Now… she clung like a frightened child to the man next to her.

"We should call them—"Han begin to say, trying to walk to the troopers, but Leia instantly pulled him back.

"I thought they were on your side?" he asked, confused.

"What if they don't believe I am the princess?" she whispered at his ear, her fear more than obvious. "We can't risk it! Please, let's walk away from them!"

"Alright," he accepted. "I actually don't mind that idea."

They walked a few streets, each more terrifying than the last.

Han felt the girl he was holding tremble, and this time he couldn't stay quiet. "We should return to the ship," he whispered softly. "This was a bad idea."

"Hi," a small voice said behind the princess, pulling at her black clothes.

Leia immediately turned to face him.

It was a little boy, couldn't be older than four or five; he looked really, really dirty. His cheap clothes were ripped, his blond hair was all tousled, yet he was the most beautiful sight Leia had seen in a long time. The child and his sweet voice actually brought a little peace to that troubled soul.

"You're pretty," the little boy said, still pulling at the princess.

Leia got on her knees so she could face the boy. "And who you might be?" she asked, her voice almost sounding like her usual one.

The boy told her his name and repeated how pretty he found her. Leia was actually smiling sweetly now.

"I'm so sorry!" came the nervous voice of a mother. "Child, stop bothering them!" she cried and picked the boy in her arms.

"It's no bother," Leia assured her. "I was enjoying his company, actually."

The woman smiled. "Thanks dear, would you like something to eat?" she offered with good will.

Leia had to say no, no matter how much she was starving.

"Oh come on!" the woman insisted. "I just got the supplies about three days ago, so we're quite stocked. Come, come, Force knows when they're gonna send food again!"

Leia's smiled died. "Doesn't the Empire send food often after the… siege?"

The woman's pleasant face turned bitter. "Nice one, child!" she cried. "Come on, hunger is messing with your head. Poor thing, you look so tired!"

"I am hungry too," Han said.

"Han!" Leia cried. "We can't take their food!"

"Hey, sweetheart, she offered it."

"With real pleasure," the woman smiled again and motioned them to follow her.

"I want to be carried by the princess!" the small child cried.

Leia actually turned pale; the tittle she always carried with so much pride now weighting on her like a hundred pounds.

The woman laughed. "Hush child! This girl must be nothing like the princess. She's so much prettier and I am sure," she laughed. "She actually has a heart."

Leia's eyes crowded with tears. "I will carry him if you allow me," she said, trying to steady her voice. She took the boy in her shaky arms and walked to the woman's home.

Just before they reached a half done building, the boy started screaming with joy, while Leia felt her broken heart stop.

"Look, mommy!" the small child cried in his little voice. "There's a spaceship up in the sky!"

Leia gasped as she knew just what was about to happen. She almost dropped the little boy, but instead, she grabbed him tighter. She hid him under her arms, as if that could actually protect him.

The people who had been there during the last bombing started running across the streets; panic reigned before anything even happened.

"Force helps us," the mother muttered as she took the boy from Leia's arms.

"Please cover his ears," Leia begged the woman. "That was the worst part!"

Without realizing it, Leia put her trembling hands on her ears; dreading to hear the sound that was sure to come… she then felt Han's hands on her waist, clasping her and trying to take her away from her gloomy state. "What, Leia?" he asked. "What's going on?"

He still didn't know. Leia almost envied him for that. But oh, he would soon know…

"Come on!" the woman cried, motioning Han and Leia to follow her.

Han shook his head. "Actually, we should go now—"

"Do as she said!" Leia cried harshly.

As they ran behind the woman with the child, the bombing started.

Leia screamed at the top of her lungs, and as anyone's cries, hers died behind the unbearable and thunderous clatter.

She felt still Han's hands on her as they ran for their lives, and the fact that he was there was probably the only thing that allowed her to keep her sanity.

Before they could reach the fort the woman was trying to reach, Coronet's streets became a maze impossible to escape. Han and Leia cursed while the mother gave a quiet prayer.

It was only five minutes.

Five, _eternal_ , unbearably minutes. Yet how much destruction did the Empire bring in that short time.

When it was all over, Leia hated the fact that she was clinging to Han like the child clung to his mother.

She wasn't used to being so vulnerable, so broken, just so… dare she say, weak?

The way begin clearing sometime afterwards. A group of men appeared before them as the tall mess collapsed. "Here there are more!" one of them cried. They instantly took the mother and child.

"You alright man?" one of them asked Han.

"Could be better," he said as he passed his hands across his dirty face.

"Miss, do you need anything?" the soldier asked Leia.

Never, not even after the battle at the rebel base had she looked so terrible.

It wasn't just her appearance; the whole air around her was disturbing and broken.

"She's really shook up," a rebel said and offered her his arm.

"That's okay," Han said. "I'll help her."

Leia said nothing as Han carried her, walking behind the rebels.

* * *

 **AN:** I don't typically do this, but for this chapter, I drew inspiration from the song Goodbye Blue Sky by Pink Floyd. I hope it was okay.


	22. The Alliance's Only Hope

**Author's Note:** The "Imperials" and "Rebels" parts of the chapter are not always in the same timeline—I hope it's not confusing.

* * *

Chapter XXII: The Alliance's Only Hope

In the main dining room of the Skywalker Castle in Coruscant, a group of Imperial officers awaited Darth Vader and Queen Amidala.

It was a rare occurrence, one that many officers found odd, but times were changing, the world was turning, and it was really not in anyone's place to question it.

The fact that the Queen actually left Naboo was not so unusual anymore, not with all the rumors circulating around the Royal Family; but the fact that the Emperor would actually bring her to discuss the Empire's affairs, was something some of the men on that table thought very peculiar, very interesting. And they were curious to see the dynamic between the two most powerful beings in the galaxy.

Padmé was not looking forward to that meeting. She felt unfitted to be before any crowd, even one as intimate and small. She sat in front of her wide mirror, contemplating her image, extravagant and gorgeous for the moment, which really didn't match how she was feeling inside.

"You don't have to come if you don't want to," Anakin said, staring at his beautiful wife and walking towards her.

"I have to," she sighed. "It's worse not knowing."

He sat next to her and laid his head on her shoulder. "And do I have to go?" he grinned and got more comfortable.

"Ani," she laughed, sadly. "My love, these are hard times we're enduring. But at least we're not completely alone. We have each other."

"Yes," he muttered. "I don't know what I would do without you…"

Images of rebels smashing her into pieces burned in his mind.

"Anakin?" she asked. "Are you alright?" From time to time, she could actually notice he was suffering from a lot more than he confessed.

He still couldn't be completely honest to her. And he feared mentioning his nightmares out loud. It was almost as if by keeping them to himself they lost strength and he could almost pretend they never happened .

He said nothing and gave her a soft kiss. "Ready to go?" she asked.

He nodded. "You look beautiful," he said as they walked the stairway, arm in arm, to meet the officers.

* * *

The conversation was tense, the environment uncomfortable. The two rulers stern and cold.

It was a sensitive issue they were discussing, and more than personal for the Emperor and his wife (even more so to him). The Rebel Alliance was a threat to peace, to law and order, yet Anakin had more powerful reasons to hate them and want to exterminate them.

More senators had been discovered as traitors, many had been arrested. It seemed like at that point the Skywalkers couldn't trust their own shadows.

The Rebellion was gaining strength, they were growing confident and almost obtained influence and power. People across the galaxy were taking them seriously now; the Empire needed to take drastic measures—and it did.

"The troopers who survived the Battle of Yavin," General Cassio Tagge spoke with caution, and like every other man never giving a glance to the Queen. "Said there was nothing too impressive regarding ability or equipment. The Battle was our victory, Your Majesty. It was a tremendous blow to the rebels, one from which they will not recover."

"A victory?" A calm voice spoke, gaining everyone's attention. "Forgive me General, but I fail to see how what happened in Yavin was good for the Empire."

"Grand Admiral," Tagge replied with thinly veiled displeasure. "We caught them off-guard. We destroyed their base. What exactly makes you think they won?"

The Grand Admiral almost smiled. "Everything you've just said, General."

Anakin was as confused as everyone on that table, he was not in the mood for Thrawn's riddles, so he just urged him to get to the point.

"Of course, Your Majesty," Thrawn had a way of appearing respectful even when he was about to make a fool of someone. "I would think it's so obvious. But yes… We had the rebels within our grasp. We had the bigger military, the most advanced weapons; we found their secret base. And we should've, at the very least, caused the conflict to diminish and the balance to fall on our side again, yet they gave a good enough fight to maintain the true victor unclear; everything it's blurred… and it's dangerous."

The group of men didn't look any less confused. But one person was finally seeing the meaning behind Thrawn's words.

"We've raised their confidence," Queen Amidala said, her voice far away. "We've given them hope."

Thrawn smiled at her, unafraid, even when he was more than aware of what happened to the last officer that dared being civil with her.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Just so. They have now moved their base, they know that if they survived us once, they can do it again. We must be more careful than ever. If we want to succeed."

 _If…_ He spoke as though there was a chance of the Empire not succeeding, as if the possibility of failure was there; he clearly thought the rebels had a chance of winning. It was unnerving and every other Imperial officer stayed in denial, thinking Yavin only proved the dominance the Galactic Empire still held. Overconfidence would be their biggest weakness.

"We must not forget, too," Grand Admiral Thrawn went on. "That they have Force users on their side."

A strong growl resonated from the Emperor's chest, his anger rising as he already knew where the conversation was going.

Darth Vader had worked so hard and for so many years, making sure all traces of the Jedi were extinguished, he could hardly believe anyone would dare follow that ancient religion. Becoming a Jedi in the Galactic Empire was the most absolute way to ensure your death sentence. At least before.

"As long as they are not fully trained Jedi, that will hardly matter," another officer said.

"But didn't one already show himself?" Thrawn said, making the tension that was covering the imperials grow. "A mystery Jedi with a green lightsaber has helped the rebels during several battles now. Your Majesty," he spoke more cautiously now. "I know this is a hard time for you… but you're needed in the battlefield."

Anakin's face grew red and hot, anger and indignation threatening to control him. He did his best to remain calm. It was something he already knew, something Grand Moff Tarkin had pointed out before. He knew it was true, but he couldn't do that.

Vader would be more than glad to drop everything behind to chase after the damn Jedi and kill him. He'd be more than willing to destroy the traitor of the Empire… But Anakin wouldn't allow that. Anakin needed Padmé and she couldn't be left alone and unprotected.

The Sith and the man were in constant war, more often than not evil won, yet not when it involved Padmé, not when it involved his family.

It was another reason he desperately wanted his children back.

Anakin loved and missed his children, but the Sith within him also couldn't wait to get them back. The Apprentices needed to finally show their power and strength. They needed to become the hunters of Jedi and the stoppers of traitors.

Deep down Anakin didn't want to put his children in such position, and if he was honest with himself, he preferred to be the one who killed the Jedi, whom Vader hated not just for his devotion to an Order long gone (the one he destroyed), but because he was also a rebel.

"The Jedi will be deal with in time," The Emperor said, darkly. "Just like every rebel, traitor, and enemy of the Empire."

His voice was harsh, pure ice yet seductive. The fiery Sith glance that accompanied every word made every man shrink in fear. Except Thrawn. He knew he was safe, even if the Emperor wanted to kill him, he wouldn't. The Empire couldn't afford to lose him at such a point in the Civil War.

Anakin didn't care enough for the moment, and he was planning to leave the military's next move completely on the Grand Admiral; after all, if he could find the rebel base once, he certainly could do it again. In fact, he was expected to.

"I am in as much hurry to accomplish that as you are, Your Majesty," Thrawn said, smiling grimly. "After all, I too worry about our Princess's fate!" His red eyes met those of the queen by the end of his sentence.

* * *

Princess Leia laid on a small, wooden bed as a doctor checked on her.

She didn't make a single move or sound; she stared up at the tall ceiling without any apparent emotion.

"No trauma," the doctor calmly said. "She does have a great number of bruises, but I think they're old ones—probably from the last one. I've injected her a pain-killer since she wouldn't take any. I rather think she'll be fine," he smiled faintly.

"Why haven't you used bacta?" Han asked as his frown deepened.

"We've a shortage, young man. We only use it on the most necessary cases," the doctor replied, coolly.

Han's fists tightened behind his back. Watching's Leia's purple-bruised body definitely counted as a most necessary case on his mind.

"She's just covered in dust and in really great shock," the doctor said as he noticed Han's obvious displeasure. "Can't blame her; one never really gets used to these damn bombings."

"It was our first," Han said, watching Leia's empty face with a look of concern and anger.

"No, sweetie," the woman that had come with them said. "You must be in great shock, too; since this is the third time the Empire bombs Corellia!"

"Yeah, but we weren't here during those," Han snarled. "We just got here."

One of the rebels turned a stern and suspicious glance on Han. "How is that possible?" He asked, raising a thin black eyebrow.

Han cleared his throat, perhaps he was saying too much… but, to some extent, he trusted the rebels. After all, they had just saved his life. Still he had doubts. "We didn't know things were so bad around here… We were during a… trip, my girlfriend and I, and then; well, you can guess the welcome we had."

The rebel didn't look like he believed him much, but he appeared to ignore it for a while.

"What's your name?" the rebel asked.

"Han Solo."

"You are a Corellian, are you not?"

"I am."

"And she? Where is she from? What's her name?"

Han waited a few moments. "None of your business," he said with pretended jealousy.

The young rebel laughed. "Hey man, I'm not trying to steal your girl."

"Good."

"Seriously," he pressed. "What's her name?" Han said nothing; he could tell the rebels were growing more suspicious. He finally decided to lie. "Jule," he said.

The rebel turned a sad face. "I know someone with that name…" he sighed. He approached the princess. "Are you in much pain?" he asked softly. "The doctor said you were fine. But do you need anything?"

She was still mute.

"Do you have any food?" Han asked. "She hasn't eaten in a long time. She fainted just before the bombing started."

The rebel nodded.

A tray of food was brought before Leia, it had nothing she could ever wish to eat, yet her mind and stomach begged her to stand up and eat it.

Nevertheless she remained lying down, eyes still staring at the ceiling and beyond, and always remembering the horrible fear of living in the middle of a war.

"Come on, Sweetheart," Han said as he stood by her side. "Eat."

Silent tears streamed down her face. For a second, she wished to tell the rebels who she was, so they could end her existence at last…

Han tried bringing a slice to her mouth, but she wouldn't open it. He sighed in defeat, he felt depressed till he saw Leia curved her head to the side. "Where," her voice was finally heard, a low whisper it was, and as weak as it sounded, it warmed Han's heart. "Where is the boy?" She asked, slowly. "He survived? Oh, please tell me he survived!"

Han kissed the top of her head. "He's sleeping in his mother's arms," he said, thinking Leia would smile; but she only breathed out in relief.

* * *

Anakin and Padmé flew across the stars again.

It was _not_ a pleasant trip. The Executer wandered planet after planet, it landed, explored and left never to any success.

Anakin was shocked to see he was growing to hate space. Indeed, though hating was something he usually found easy, that was one thing he hadn't ever expected.

He stared at the immensity outside his ship, utter blackness graced by sparkly stars, hating life, hating his failure, and hating the mess that the galaxy had again become.

His thoughts raged from one thing to another within seconds—yet they all almost equally infuriated and pained him. He thought of the rebels, groaning inwardly for his wife's future murderers and for the hidden Jedi.

He thought of his missing children: his unpredictable son and bold daughter.

He thought of the galaxy he ruled: torn by war and in absolute turmoil.

He thought of her… imagining her as she was at the moment, crying inside their private quarters; thinking also about their missing children.

"Your Majesty," Vader heard behind him, which hardly brought him back into the present world.

Anakin could feel the terror and panic from that officer, even above his mask of tranquility, and in a matter of seconds he knew he was about to learn something about his daughter.

"What is it, Captain?" he asked, shortly.

The man cleared his throat; he took a deep breath, and finally informed Vader about the message just received.

Even though he knew he was walking straight to his death, Needa wasn't any less shocked and frightened as he felt Vader's invisible grip around his neck. His wide eyes only grew as he saw the Emperor ignite his red lightsaber.

* * *

While Han rested on the floor, Leia rested on his lap. She closed her eyes, allowing a small gleam of light to cover her; and she just dwelled on the closeness they had for the moment. She played with each finger of his hand while he entertained himself with her long, messy, cascading, brown hair.

"You know this isn't like last time?" he said, bringing his face close to hers so that no one would hear. "We're not captured; we can go. I doubt there's much you could… learn here."

She slowly opened her eyes. "I am not ready…" she breathed in and out. "I can't see this city again—not yet at least." Again she closed her eyes.

"All right," he accepted. "But what about Chewie and your droid and…"

"They are fine," she assured him. "They were perfectly secured up in the mountains."

That was enough to ease him for a while. Soon he saw she was about to fall asleep. "Prin—Sweetheart," he said. She opened her eyes again. "You need to eat something."

"I know. I just don't have the energy to even do that."

"That's why you must eat."

"Other people need it more than me," she muttered, and she turned her head to see the crowds of people, some of them actually wounded and sick.

He made her be seated, still on top of him. And as her head laid on his broad chest, she felt how the light ran through her again, but it felt different. It was like a spark fired inside her, some new feeling was passing between them, some intense power she didn't know was possible, but she welcomed it, as it felt good, greater than anything she had ever felt before.

Finally Leia was eating, actually stuffing her mouth with whatever they threw her way; Han also ate with her and for a few moments, Leia actually enjoyed life again.

"It's nice to see you guys are doing better," the male rebel from before said, standing in front of them.

Leia couldn't face him. "T—thanks," she muttered. "Thank you for your help."

"No problem," the rebel said. "I am sorry; I don't think I heard your name?"

"No you didn't," she said, losing all previous softness and signs of gratitude.

"Princess!" the voice of a child cried happily, saving Leia from the rebel's questioning gaze.

"Well, hello again," Leia smiled at the child. "Look who's woken up!"

She carried the boy in her arms.

"Looks like you have competition, Solo," the rebel laughed.

"I am not too worried," Han grinned.

The boy kept laughing with Leia, he continued that way until his mother called him.

At the sound of his mother, the boy immediately stood up and ran, crossing the path of many passing by rebels. As he ran, he would've crashed against a group of men, who were carrying big boxes in their arms; the men managed to react in time to not push him, but one of them lost balance, causing him to drop one of the heavy boxes.

The box would've hit the boy's head, but Princess Leia, worriedly, cried, "No!" and immediately stopped the box in midair. Everyone saw as she raised and lowered her hand, the box was softly laid on the floor.

* * *

" _This is Princess Leia of the Galactic Empire."_

It had never been hard for Anakin to keep his men in check. He never struggled to make himself be feared. He was Darth Vader, after all; inflicting fear, pain and reverence was what he knew best. But as he heard his daughter's voice again, after so long, he couldn't even react. He wasn't even thinking about punishing those who had once again come between him and his missing daughter; his whole energy was focused on one single thing: How different she sounded. He remembered his young daughter as fearless, powerful, haughty, bold, happy… and now?

" _This is Princess Leia of the Galactic Empire! Stop firing at this ship. Gentlemen, this is an imperial order!"_

He couldn't believe nor stand the despair in her voice. The shakiness, the fear!

She knew she was on the brink of death, and she had been frightened.

And what did they do?

He hated the fact that he couldn't kill them himself.

But someone would pay for what they did to his daughter. It didn't matter who, as long as someone suffered at his hand.

But, someone—if not everyone, was already suffering…

Why would the smugglers take her to Corellia?

He wouldn't think they were geniuses, but could they really be so stupid? Or were they suicidal?

Anakin barely knew about the situation in Corellia. He knew they had been caught as one of the main suppliers for the Rebel Alliance, and of course, the Jedi his army couldn't kill.

He knew they had endured some of the worst the Civil War had offered so far; he knew they were still struggling with the aftermath of the siege.

He thought he heard there were new methods being used to keep them in check and scare them from helping the Alliance, in fact…

"Well, Commander?" Vader asked; his voice ice and nothing like the fire that was inwardly burning him.

"Your Majesty," he heard and he felt he was in one of his worst nightmares. "Coronet city was bombarded scarcely…"

"Go on."

"About an hour and a half after the princess asked permission to land."

Before Darth Vader could react to that new knowledge, he felt a world of pain and sorrow behind him. He slowly and reluctantly turned around.

"Well, Lord Vader?" Padmé asked, her voice calm but the woman completely broken. "Next move?" her words came amidst bitter sarcasm, burning tears and nervous laughter.


	23. Everything Comes Back

Chapter XXIII: Everything Comes Back

All eyes, even those who struggled and suffered to be opened were immediately set on the princess.

Every rebel, every refugee; those who laid motionless with no strength, those who walked with much to do, every single one, stopped and stared…

Leia gulped and held her breath; realized she had done something, something important—yet she didn't fully understand what the big deal was.

She had used the Force.

Something that came naturally and she did almost every day, something she had been taught was her right and obligation to learn and master. Something no one was supposed to do anymore.

"Poor girl!" the mother whispered as she finally could get a hold of her small blond boy.

"Force user!" some voices cried from afar.

Han swallowed. Then cursed.

Leia freed herself from the embrace she'd much rather retain, yet she felt it was necessary. She rose from the ground, and she expected to be tumbled down with blaster fire. For several minutes, nothing apart from gasps and murmurs occurred.

"Come with me," the male rebel said to Leia, his voice barely audible yet she heard him. Han tried to go after them, but the rebel refused, and oddly, Leia agreed with him.

"I'll be back soon," Leia said and kissed Han.

They entered a supposedly private room, narrow and warm. The rebel sat in front of a desk and motioned the princess to sit down. "Please Jule," he said and Leia blinked, surprised. "That's not your name, is it?"

She shook her head.

The rebel sighed. "All right. We can skip that for now. My name is Harxsh Marr. I do not wish to hurt you."

He spoke like one speaks to a child. Using a tone low and sweet, one that tried to put her at ease, which was impossible at the moment. Though Leia didn't realize, she was shaking.

"Don't be afraid," Harxsh said, smiling encouragingly.

His kindness offended her more than anything.

"I—I am not afraid," she muttered, hating the shakiness that completely denied and canceled her words. "What do you want?"

"Pardon me?"

"You want to talk to me about something… What is it? Please be quick."

"Right…" the rebel coughed, awkwardly. "I'm guessing life has not been very easy for you. People like you live in constant fear—but I know someone that can help you."

Leia's brain was twisting inside her head. She could not make any sense of his words, and truthfully, she didn't want to.

"I'm not going to pretend I understand the Force," the rebel went on and Leia's heart was now beating so strongly she could hear a ringing in her ears. "For most of my lifetime they've all been in hiding—"

"Please stop talking," Leia said, in a tone the rebel didn't realize was warning him and for his own good.

"You look very young. You must be at the very least seventeen or eighteen—"

"I'm nineteen," she interrupted again. "Almost twenty."

"Right. So you _are_ as old as the Skywalker Empire. Then I was right, you don't know anything about the Force and you feel endangered—"

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

"You don't have to hide your power from us. I can't promise you I'll get him very soon. I don't even know if he's still alive but I know a Jedi—"

"Stop!" Leia screamed, turning to find the door.

"Miss, I'm sorry. I don't mean to upset you but… We need all the help we can get. And he is searching for people to train with him to defeat the Empire…" he stopped talking, weirdly feeling that to do otherwise would be cruel and merciless.

"You're mistaken…" Leia whispered, finding she could not face the rebel nor the hatred and anger she usually used to shelter herself from their kind. "I am leaving soon. I'm going home—and nothing is going to change that."

"Miss," the rebel stared at her with pity. "You cannot leave Corellia. Surely you must know that."

"I'm going home," Leia said, a deep sadness attacking her as she opened the door and a face welcomed her from outside.

She startled back as if she had seen a ghost.

"I was not spying," Jule said. "I was just making sure you didn't kill him."

Leia's face had no color under the dust and dirt.

"Your brother is as mad as you are," she said, trying to exit but Jule blocked her way.

"Jule?" came the voice of the young male rebel.

"Harxsh!" Jule cried, running to her brother's side.

Leia felt a strange twirl of emotions as she watched them embrace each other, bathing in tears and never ending smiles.

When they realized they were being watched, they stared back at the princess.

"I'm proud of you, Harxsh," Jule said. "You've survived a Skywalker two times now."

"What?" he questioned, confused.

"What's happening?" Han asked, walking to them.

"Let's get out of here," Leia said desperately, holding on to the smuggler.

"She's in such shock," Harxsh said. "Captain Solo, I really think she should rest."

Jule snorted mockingly; Han and Leia said nothing, they just looked at each other and silently agreed on escaping the rebel's forte immediately. They might've succeeded, but Leia stopped dead when she saw the rebel's little astromech droid.

" _I have other things to show you,"_ she heard the rebel's words in her aching head.

 _Never mind that,_ Leia thought. _Get out of here!_

Holding Han's hand tightly, they turned their backs on the two rebels.

"I'll walk you out," Jule said, calling them back.

"Guys you're safe here," Harxsh said stubbornly.

"She's safe anywhere," Jule growled bitterly. "The Force really is with your damn lineage, Leia. You survived, once again unscathed and this time from the Empire's bombs!"

"Jule?" her brother was astonished. "What did you just call her?"

Han's eyes pleaded Jule to be quiet, Leia looked like she was about to pass out.

"This is Darth Vader and Queen Amidala's daughter," Jule said loudly, making sure everyone around her listened. "The Empire's little Princess. The Sith's Apprentice. _Leia of Naboo!"_ She screamed _._

The previous shock that happened when Leia used the Force in front of everyone was nothing compared to the new roar that exploded in the small underground forte.

People screamed. Pleads. Insults. Fear and terror reigned but not as much as… Leia immediately felt it. The prime feeling around her was—a thirst for revenge.

These people were forced to hide; they had stopped their lives and they lived in fear of the next attack. This was not a war zone. Corellia was not fighting anymore. There had not been fighting since the siege. They could not strike back because it would absolutely backfire. The Empire would respond a million times stronger and harder.

Just a few hours ago they experienced the third bombing.

The impotence at knowing there was nothing they could do caused the strongest of hatreds to develop even in the youngest and most innocent of minds. They could not touch Vader, they'd never reach Amidala. They were at the mercy of the Empire. And yet—here they had the Princess:

Unarmed. Injured. Unprotected.

It is no surprise every other rebel raised and pointed their weapons at Leia. Han was taken from her side, adding to her vulnerability, abandonment and solitude.

The shouting was so loud Leia could only read what people mouthed. She managed to see the small child she had met before, he said something to his mother along the lines, "What're they doing to the princess?" She hushed her baby and stared at Leia with hate and disgust.

She saw Han as he fought to be released and run to her.

She saw the rebel siblings, arguing like savages when before they had been so happy at finding each other still alive.

And what could she do? Kill everyone? Was that possible?

She got the feeling—it was. Yet she'd never try. Not again.

So let them kill her?

The rebels had now circled around her, keeping her from any way out. The refugees continued screaming their hatred for Leia and her _merciless_ family.

What could she do?

The hatred and hope for her blood to spill made her think—made her realize, there are worse things than death. And if she were to died, she was okay with it, maybe even ready… but she had to say something first.

She raised her right hand and the screams intensified.

"Careful!" a woman shouted. "She's going to do a Sith trick!"

"Kill her now!" a male teenager shrieked.

"What are you all waiting for? Someone hand me a blaster I'll do it!"

"No, no, no!"

A new scream overpowered the rest. It was very akin to what you'd hear during a bombing or during a battle from a civilian. Someone who felt life was being ripped from their grip.

It was the child's mother—she screamed as her baby floated from her arms and up across the faint air.

The child laughed innocently as he soared above every arm that tried to reach him, till he softly landed on Leia's arms.

"Oh using a child as shield!" someone yelled. "Low even for an imperial!"

Leia rocked the little boy. "I just wanted to say goodbye," she calmly said.

She did so, she kissed the boy's blond head and put him back on the floor. He stayed by her side, ignoring the screams that ordered him to move.

"Everybody quiet," Leia said in a stern voice.

It took a few minutes but at last, you could hear a pin drop on that previously loud place.

" _I am_ Princess Leia. Daughter of Queen Amidala and Darth Vader _. I am_ an Apprentice of a Sith Lord. But you should not fear me. You should not fear my family."

People murmured, ever so quietly.

"I know nothing I say can change your hearts. I know you will kill me." Leia raised her head high. "But I want you all to know: As I go, as I die—I die loving my family!"

"I die loving my family," Jule mimicked in a hurtful tone. "Those would be fantastic last words." She smiled next to her brother. He stared at her and shook his head.

"Right," Jule sighed. "Enough of this. I was never a fan of melodrama—everyone, put your blasters down!" she commanded harshly.

The room again exploded with voices. "Quiet!" Jule shouted. "We're not gonna kill her!"

"I will not be made a prisoner," Leia said bravely.

"Release Han Solo," was Jule's next unexpected order.

"And who made you the boss?" a rebel questioned boldly.

"Well, we have no commanders or generals alive," Jule said simply. "I guess the higher positions are up for grabbers."

"And you arrived like five minutes ago!" another rebel fought.

"What's your point?" she snarled, then humbled her voice as she saw the look on the rebels. "All right, don't get mad… Harxsh here was on his way to become a commander. He's great friends with… the Jedi and has been on a mission with him and Rogue Squadron. He's even gotten the attention and approval of General Rieekan and Mon Mothma. I say we let him make the decision," she shrewdly said.

There were a series of words and then people nodded.

"Well then," Harxsh said, humbly. "I say we let her go."

Again noise.

"You people are animals," Jule complained. "Didn't we just agree…?"

"We can let her go!" most people said.

Leia wished they had killed her already, this mess of opinions and fight for power sickened her.

"All right," Jule again ventured. "I'll try another argument. When Vader learns the princess died here, he's gonna annihilate Corellia! What'd you all say to that?"

Silence.

"That settles it," Harxsh smiled. Freeing Han, the two siblings motioned and led Han and Leia out of the forte. As they walked, people stepped aside, opening a path as if Leia were made of fire and she could burn them.

Too confused to even be relieved for having escaped death again, Leia walked unsure of what had just happened, feeling like she was dreaming a very strange dream. How was this her life?

* * *

But confusion faded when again she saw the streets of Coronet City.

How lucky she had been to be in shock when the bombing happened, right now she was too conscious and aware of her surroundings.

The smell of blood and dead, blown up bodies covered the breeze. Trees and buildings were some still caught on fire.

Stormtroopers marched around every street… not even the feeling of Han's hand around her own could make Leia feel better.

They walked in silence to the far off mountains.

When they entered the Millennium Falcon, Han breathed out in relief and before the Wookiee could wrap his big hairy arms around him, Han grabbed him, giving him a large hug. "Miss you, buddy," he said, recovering his usual voice. "This has been a weird and really long day."

"Yeah," Leia sighed, falling on a seat next to C-3PO.

"Everything all right, Your Majesty?" the droid inquired.

She opened her eyes wide. "I feel it was a lifetime since anyone called me that."

"How rude and improper from us," Jule said in a mocking voice of fake reverence. Her brother shot her a look of anger.

"Well," Han said, awkwardly. "Thanks for… all, you guys. I am glad you found each other again and that me and Leia are… still alive and all. That's two we owe you, Jule."

"No it's not," Jule snarled.

"We're gonna take off… bye," Han stared at the rebels, wondering how long he'd have to wait before they left his ship.

"Just one thing," Harxsh breathed nervously. "I have something for you, Leia."

 _Prin—cess! Princess!_ How hard could it be to… oh she didn't even care anymore.

He pulled something from a bag he carried, he walked and put it into Leia's hands. She hadn't even the ability of being startled anymore. It was a lightsaber.

"Let's go," Jule said sternly.

"No," Leia said, strangely.

Han passed his hands across his face. This long day was just getting started!

"Sweetheart—"

"I just have one question."

"I'll try my best," Jule said. "To not be too honest. I think you've proven you don't react very well to the truth."

Maybe that answer was meant to enrage the princess, and any other time, it would've. But she was too tired for anger. She was sick of being angry. Sick of being hated and of hating. At that moment, Leia only wished to be home.

The princess could never understand so much animosity towards her; she had never purposely hurt anyone in her life, not anyone who didn't threaten her first, and ever since she left home, she had received nothing but bad and mean treatments.

"Jule," Leia said slowly, taking a number of deep breaths, her words coming reluctantly from her pale lips. "Have we met before?"

She could almost smile at the fact that she at last had caught the rebel off-guard. Almost.

"Leia, maybe smoke went to your head. We saw each other every day for a week on Yavin…"

"No," Leia interrupted. "You know what I mean."

The rebel lost every sign of sarcasm and mockery. "Yes."

"You—you remember us?" Harxsh dared speak.

Leia took some time. "I thought I seen your face before, Jule."

Jule stared at the princess for a moment, her face softened for a short second as she said, "Leia, mine was the first face your eyes ever saw."

Not one of them could think of anything to say that could follow that sentence—and they didn't have to, because just a few seconds later, the floor began to quiver.

Imperial ships were arriving in Corellia.

* * *

"Straight to the Castle," the Emperor commanded inside The Executer. "Accommodate the fleet first, send a squadron to begin the search immediately!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

* * *

"We have to return to the forte!" Jule said to her brother.

"Leia, take care, please. Good luck. It—it was good to see you again." Harxsh took Leia's hand and planted a soft kiss there before exiting the Falcon and disappearing from Leia's wide eyes.

"What do we do, Princess?" Han asked her as he took her in his arms. "Leia?"

Time was moving so fast, her strange dream was turning into an absolute nightmare. "I want to go home," was all Leia could say.

That's all he needed. "Chewie, get the ship ready!"

Escaping Corellia was not any easier than getting in, but with so many ships entering, Han managed to fool the Empire, gaining enough time to make the jump into hyperspace.

* * *

"I think we should wait," Jule said as she and Harxsh entered Coronet City. "We might lead the imperials into the forte and I got a feeling—we're going to be heavily blamed for this as it is..."

"At least Leia is all right. Do you know anything about Luke?"

"Not really. Leia said nothing but I think he's still alive. I wonder where he is…"

* * *

Next to Han Solo, Chewbacca growled loudly, as they flew the Millennium Falcon across space, blissfully apart, at last, from the Civil War.

"You said it, Chewie," Han said, finally somewhat comfortable. "We really should've asked for more money."

The Wookiee growled again.

"Shut up. Of course I'm doing this for the reward… Do you think she's okay now?"

Chewbacca laughed mockingly.

"Just for that I'll leave you alone to fly this thing! I'm going to rest."

But resting was the last thing on the smuggler's mind, and the Wookiee realized that, which is why he didn't argue with him and let him go—he also worried about the princess.

Leia slept seemingly soundly inside the captain's private quarters. Wrapped around Han's white sheets, she almost seemed peaceful.

"Good night, Sweetheart," Han murmured softly, kneeling by her side and laying a small kiss on her forehead.

Leia moved around, as if in pain, she groaned and screamed and at last jumped into a sitting position. "Oh," she slowly muttered something under her breath. She raised one hand to lay it on her thumping breast, then lifted the other, revealing the lightsaber that she held.

"Han," she said, before even knowing he was there, infiltrated next to her.

"I'm here," he said, sitting next to her.

"Oh Han!" she cried and he was relieved to see she was smiling.

"So… bad dream?" he grinned and asked.

"Strange dream," she said. "Oh Han," she wrapped her arms around his waist. "I can hardly believe it! We finally have a destination!"

"We've had that for a while," he said. "Remember? You're dying to show me Naboo."

"Oh that's forgotten," she said. "I know where he is!"

His body jerked, almost getting away from her. "What?"

"I know where Luke is! Oh I am so happy I think I am going to cry!"

Indeed, there was so much emotion on the princess's eyes she looked on the brink of tears.

"I—I thought you'd forgotten about that prince," Han said, now being the one entering a nightmare.

"Never! How could I? Oh, Han, you will take me to him, won't you?"

He let go of her, letting her fragile body fall into the mattress. "Where is it this time?"

She clung to a pillow. "Set course to the Dagobah system." She closed her tired, unrested eyes. "I have a feeling things will finally change for the best. I won't be alone anymore! Oh he will come back and help me clear the mess that is my head…"

And she fell asleep again, unaware of how wrong her words were.


	24. Dagobah

Chapter XXIV: Dagobah

Oh how very false was the lightness in Leia's heart as she finished braiding her hair. The easiness with which she currently carried herself couldn't be more pretended. There were no large mirrors aboard the Millennium Falcon, yet no matter how much Han insisted she looked fine, Leia could tell her appearance had never been worse—what with all she'd been through her image had been the last thing she had been worrying about.

She wore her own pair of skin-tight black pants and shoes (the pants had a few patches and the original deep, luscious color had faded to almost greyness); she had on a beautiful, clean white loose shirt, courtesy of the ship's captain; and the warm brown sweater with which she sheltered herself from the coldness of space also came from Han.

"Your Majesty, Captain Solo is calling you," C-3PO said outside the door of the fresher.

"Just a moment, Threepio," Leia said, not really sure of what she was waiting for. Perhaps just taking a few more deep breaths to increase her fake calmness.

"What does he want?" Leia asked.

"Apparently, talking to you, Princess."

Having spent the last few hours cleaning herself to look presentable, her image was still the number one thought she focused on—on the surface, at least—and it was something that could rather lower her spirits. She sighed and walked towards the cockpit.

When she was face to face to Han, she thought it was kind of rude of him to not smile at her, especially since she was trying so hard to fake a smile for him.

"Well, Han?" she said, her fake smile still on.

"Your Highness," Han said, a bit roughly, which she wouldn't have noticed if it weren't for the fact that she had gotten so used to the softer tone he had been employing with her lately. "We're almost there. What do you know, you're about to find your prince after all!"

She could not fake a smile anymore. Not just for Han's treatment, but because of what his words implied.

Her space journey was coming to an end, or so it seemed, and it appeared that at last she'd fulfill her mission; one that at first had sounded so simple—bringing back her twin brother. Now, she couldn't believe she was so close. The fact caused a twirl of emotions within her, none that she could explain or comprehend.

"Well, don't look so excited," Han said, sarcastically.

She twisted her mouth in displeasure. She had already so much on her mind, the last thing she could need were Han's tactless comments. "Oh leave me alone!" Leia said defensibly, and turning her back on him, went back into the cabin.

"Fine," he scornfully answered. "Guess this is how is going to be…" he bitterly muttered to himself as he sat next to the Wookiee. "We're back to the beginning… Giving me orders," he complained. "All she cares about is that stupid prince."

Chewbacca growled next to him, confused.

"I really don't give a damn, Chewie! If she cares only about that Luke Skywalker… Then I care only about the money!"

Chewbacca growled again, warning Han to shut up.

"Why should I? After all we've been through, she…"

He stopped, turned his head slightly and saw that she had returned.

Han and Leia stared at each other for some moments, without words, just four fiery eyes locked, wrong emotions passing through them.

"Is that so?" Leia said in a shaky voice, breaking the silence.

"It is," Han almost growled.

She was incredibly hurt by his words. Why did he have to act so nastily as her mind was in such a delicate place? How could he change so when before he had been the greatest man she had ever known, guarding her and cherishing her? Where was this attitude coming from? She couldn't understand it.

Long gone were the days in which she used her twin brother's name to make Han jealous in that previous carefree and almost childish way. So much had happened she didn't even remember Han didn't know Luke was her brother.

If only her mind wasn't so clouded… She could see his point of view and understand him, perhaps even agree. He had done so much for her, risked his life, doing the most foolish actions of his life, and all for her, just to in the end remain a mean for her to reach another man. One whom Han believed she was romantically involved, and had had her heart broken. Maybe unaccounted for and over the top… But his anger and change in attitude weren't sudden and out of the blue.

"You said in the rebel base you wouldn't pay me at all," Han said in a hard voice, the most detached he'd ever used on her. "But let me tell you right now, if I don't get those credits I am NOT landing the Falcon anywhere in this system!"

She was partly thankful for the anger that exploded within her, she preferred it to sadness. "You deserve a handsome reward, Captain Solo," she coldly said. "50,000 credits after you get me and Luke on Naboo. Does that seem enough for your greedy black heart?"

He wanted to say he'd fly her free anywhere she wanted to in the galaxy forever if she just forgot about that prince. "That should cover it," he said instead with a fake triumphant smile.

They didn't speak after that, there seemed to be no possible conversation to carry.

 _Wait,_ Leia wondered with a harsh pound beneath her breast some time afterward. _Did that just happen?_ No, no, it couldn't… _It's like he was someone else…_ Not the man that had been her only human companion for the past months… Someone who didn't love her—what did she just think?!

She turned to see him. Love. Why did she have to think of that word? Yes, he had kissed her and held her many times, but maybe those embraces didn't mean as much to him as they did to Leia. But she had felt it! Was it just that he was a man and she was young and pretty? There wasn't anything deep at all between them?

To hell with dignity and pride, she had to ask!

"Han," she cautiously tried to speak again.

"Don't start nagging me," he said sharply without looking at her. "You're gonna see His _Other_ Royal Highness soon. We're about to land."

"Oh Han, please that's not what I meant—wait. We're in Dagobah?" she asked, her previous woes and worries creeping back. She had many layers of pain, and they seemed to take turns to take over her.

"Can you feel your loved one yet?" Han asked, his voice vicious, hurtful, throbbing with mad jealousy.

"Oh are we going to see Master Luke again!" C-3PO exclaimed delighted. Han couldn't believe he ever felt a slight trace of affection towards the protocol droid. His words caused the ship's captain to want to smash him to pieces.

"Luke," Leia muttered, standing up. She gulped, put her hands over her heart. "Please be here," she whispered pleadingly. "Please Luke—ah!" the Falcon took a fast and nasty turn, causing Leia to lose all balance, almost falling to the floor. "Han!" she knew he was a fine pilot, even when under attack he flew smoothly, she knew he had done that on purpose. She wanted to insult him, but decided to ignore him and instead sat next to her protocol droid, the only part of home she had had for such long time.

"How do I look, Threepio?" she asked, anxiously.

"Oh, Your Majesty, I can't lie… Those clothes have seen their better days. I am sure Master Luke will be happy to see you nonetheless—whoaa!" again a savage turn. 3PO smashed against the ground, clattering loudly. "Captain Solo, have you forgotten how to fly—Aahh!"

"Shut up," Han snarled with a small, childish smile. "Getting there."

"You've just lost 10 thousand!" Leia screamed infuriated.

The ship spun so rapidly even Han and Chewbacca almost fell out of their seats.

"Ugh!" Leia grunted. _He really cares about money, the scoundrel!_

Chewbacca was growling angrily; C-3PO crying things afraid; Leia tried to walk to Han, get him to act reasonably, or at least punch him in the face when—

"Ah!" she screamed, unable of keeping steady. She walked unsurely, a few inches from him… With a harsh maneuver the Millennium Falcon landed abruptly. Leia fell into Han's lap. Her hands on his chest, his on her waist.

They both laughed awkwardly. "Don't go after him," Han said seriously. "Leia… let's go."

Her smile faded. "I have to," she stood up. "Can you… come with me?"

"WHAT?" he barked.

"Help me find him. Please!"

Han passed a desperate hand across his face. They both walked outside the Falcon.

* * *

"G-good luck, Your Highness. Captain Solo," 3PO muttered nervously, watching ahead at the path Han and Leia took towards the dark forest.

"We should've brought Chewie along," Han said anxiously.

"We're fine," Leia said, almost fooling herself. "I have the lightsaber the rebel gave me."

They walked for a while, every deserted way looking the same. The air was musty, thick, and covered in mist. There was barely any light, and they had to really watch their step, careful of not stepping over something foreign and strange. It was disgusting, entering a swampy nightmare Leia had previously seen briefly inside her head, while in the deepest corners of her mind.

Their shoes were absolutely ruined, they realized as they roamed by the side of a black lake. The distant sound of native creatures reached Leia's ears; it was harder and harder to move forward without sinking… Yet Leia feared only one thing.

"Please no more rebels," she whispered frightfully under her breath without noticing. "Please, please no more rebels…"

Her hands and legs started shaking, just imagining what would happen if again she found herself within the enemy's grasp.

She docked slightly as Han did, avoiding a series of green vines, then she felt as he wrapped his hand around her own. _Can he always tell when I am afraid?_ She wondered, a sad smile reaching her face. _What the hell goes on within his mind…?_

"Hold me," she said without thinking. "Hold me tightly, Han."

He did so without saying anything else.

"I seriously doubt there are any rebels here," Han said slowly. "I doubt there's anyone here at all."

"But he told me," Leia said desperately. " _'You must come to the Dagobah System'._ He has to be here… If I don't find him here, that's my last hope, Han. And I don't know what I will do… I would die!"

"You wouldn't," Han argued. "You… you have—"

 _Me_. The words couldn't leave his mouth, so he had to use actions. He kissed her, passionately, praying she wouldn't push him away. She didn't. She threw her arms around his neck. It was so strange, being so alone for the first time; so secluded in that dark place.

If only that instant could last forever… if only that kiss was the beginning and the end for them.

Leia broke apart the kiss, she jumped slightly. "Did you hear that?" she asked quietly. "Someone's here!"

Solo reached for his blaster. "He appears at last," he sadly sighed.

"No," Leia was nervous. "I would feel his presence… Oh what is it?"

The Force was speaking to her now, she just couldn't understand… _Strong, brave, bright…_

"Oh," Leia's eyes crowded with tears, she took a few steps ahead, leaving Han behind. "Luke… Luke!"

Standing alone, afar, clad in robes so dark he almost mixed like another shadow of Dagobah's dark forest. He slowly reached over to the pale-white moonlight till at last his face was fully revealed. "Leia," he looked straight at her eyes.

She ran as fast as her feet allowed her, throwing her arms around him, she cried on his chest. Without a second passing he hugged her, too. Clasping her in his arms, smiling broadly, picking her up in the air. "I've missed you so much!" he cried, and that was the last Han could stand; he turned around abruptly and ran back to the Falcon.

"My dear sister," Luke smiled, putting her down yet keeping her in his arms. "I was getting worry. I am glad you're finally here!"

She passed her hands over her cheeks, cleaning her tears. "I can't believe it," she gasped. "You stupid boy, I have never been happier to see anyone in my life! What are you even doing here? Oh never mind, you can tell me later. Let's get out of here… I don't know how you can stand this place. Do you have a ship? You must, of course. I want to travel together, I am NOT letting you out of my sight for now!" she giggled nervously.

She could finally breath, she had done it. She succeeded. She could now go home. She could shelter under her parents' protection. She would not scold Luke, better leave that to Anakin and Padmé. She wanted to go now, she almost wished to push him to move—but why didn't he move? Why did he stare at her so curiously? Why didn't he say anything? Didn't he realize what his attitude did to her heartrate? And how little by little she felt pressure on her neck as if he were using the Force to choke her, preventing her from breathing?

"Luke, let's go," she said tiredly. "I am serious, I will not stand another minute of this madness—"

"Leia," his blue eyes gazed into her broken brown glance. "I am not leaving." He calmly said.

He did not say that. No, and she didn't hear it. Why did he say such a thing? It made her want to kill him so she wouldn't have to endure his foolishness anymore.

"I swear," she gritted her teeth. "Stop messing around. We are leaving now."

"No, Leia. We're not."

 _Try and breath,_ Leia told herself. _Reason with him. Speak. Don't slap him, no matter how much you want to…_

"Come on," she grabbed his arm and tried to move him but he was strong.

"Could you just listen to me?" Luke asked pleadingly. "Please. It's important."

"Fine," Leia breathed out with difficulty. "Explain yourself and, pray, do it quickly before my head explodes—"

"She talks just like he used to," an aged voice said behind them.

Her heart had been beating so rapidly before, and at that sudden sound she felt it stopped.

"Interesting this shall be," a second voice, even older and yet odder and shrilly said. It held just a hint of amusement.

 _Don't turn around,_ Leia thought. _You will die if you turn around._

"Leia," Luke said, and Leia wanted to cut his tongue or her own ears, anything to not hear what was coming. "I want to introduce to you: Master Yoda and Master Kenobi."

Her legs were trembling so much now she wondered how was it possible she was still standing.

"Come hither, Princess. Come with no fear." One of the voices said.

That snapped her out if it. _Fear?_ How insulting! She didn't fear anyone! Really…

Turning around she saw, as she had expected, an old man. He wore brown and white modest robes. He was tall; his face had quite a few wrinkles. His hair, slightly ginger had many splashes of grey; just like his great beard. Next to him, stood a small alien, Leia didn't even have the mind to wonder from what planet; his attire was similar; his skin a deep green. His large eyes haunted her as they so strongly gazed into her…

"Who're they?" Leia asked, wishing to never get an answer. "What's happening?"

"Leia," Luke spoke with caution. "We're both in need of guidance—we will not get it anywhere else! Stay, please. The galaxy is a mess, but we can actually make a difference!"

"H—how?"

"War has broken, as you know."

Her eyes opened so wide they almost jumped out of their eyeballs.

"People are fighting and dying but we can end it."

"Do you have some sort of magical solution?" she snarled sarcastically.

"No, but just listen and try to be calm."

"I am calm!"

"All right, but listen… There is only one way to fight the darkness we have been sunk in—"

"What, Luke?"

"We need to turn on a light. My sister, Leia, we need to bring the Jedi back."

She wasn't dreaming, this was happening. He had said that. _What now?_ She wondered as tears streamed down her face.

"Stop, Luke," she was crying. "Please let's go home. I will never tell Father, but let's go!"

"Leia, you must understand—"

"No. I swear you—"

"Listen to me!" he screamed, clearly tired of repeating that to no success. " _Lis-ten_." He spoke slowly. "I am a Jedi."

Why didn't she cut her ears when she had the chance? No, what good would've been. It wouldn't change the fact. She'd known. Or she'd suspected, yet she didn't believe till now…

A Jedi. She felt someone slash a knife into her heart and she would bleed out.

"Shut up," Leia cried. "I don't want to hear!" she paced around like a mad person. _"I think you've proven you don't react very well to the truth."_ Jule's words came back to bite her.

But how could she? How could anybody when the truth was so horrible?

Leia had been indoctrinated all her life, for her it was the Sith way or no other way… The Jedi were evil and greedy; they destroyed the Old Republic and almost destroyed the whole galaxy, and now Luke Skywalker called himself a Jedi? Her pain was probably only comparable to the one Obi-Wan Kenobi felt when he learned Anakin Skywalker had become a Sith…

"Get back," Leia whispered slowly, her voice broken. "Please, there's still a chance!" she was on the ground, getting dirt all over her. No longer praying this was a nightmare, but wishing they made it out if it together. "Don't you understand?" she screamed. "Our parents need us, we can't do this to them—YOU CAN'T! Luke you said it, we're at war! If only you had seen what I've seen… it's so horrible. We have to stop it!"

"I'm trying," Luke said calmly, his previous outburst erased. "I hope that in time you can join us there, too."

"Uh?"

"Oh, Leia you must know. I see the lightsaber that hangs on your waist. You met Harxsh and Jule Marr. You've met rebels."

Her face drained of color, she wondered how much more pain she could stand before dying.

"Damn those rebels," she said with supreme bitterness. "I should've killed them when I had the chance!"

"I believe it was them who had the chance of killing you but didn't," Luke responded with a frown. "Didn't they?"

"They're traitors and I don't want to talk about them!"

"They're two of the bravest people in the galaxy and we owe them more than you think!"

"I owe them nothing!"

"You know perfectly well that's not true! Leia, you need to calm down and hear the truth. I will tell you everything—even the things you don't want to hear. But for that you have to understand: The Jedi are not evil. Our parents are not perfect. The Rebel Alliance… is doing what needs to be done—"

"You," she gasped, interrupting him again. "You're… helping them?"

"I am a part of the Rebel Alliance, yes. I am a rebel, and once you hear everything, you'll want to be one, too—"

"Stop!" She screamed. "I hate you, Luke. Stop!" she was beyond herself, she had endured too much and was unable of taking anymore. Her own tears burned her. His words had destroyed her. It was real. And her reaction had to be real, as well.

Fuming, unhinged, she reached for the hilt of the lightsaber she carried; ignited it; pointed it at her twin brother. Unsure of everything but one thing: She would kill him. They were enemies. The Sith shall kill the Jedi.

Then she glanced slightly at the weapon she was holding, the strong glow almost blinded her. It was blue.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:** This is a chapter I wanted to write since the beginning.

I know there are a lot of Luke and Leia meet/go to Dagobah scenarios in this site, but this is my own. I hope it's okay.

Han and Leia's back and forth might had seemed unnecessary, but I just had to somewhat take him away from her so things could happen the way I intent…

Also, I guess that since Obi-Wan didn't hide in Tatooine in this universe he didn't age so much.


	25. Jedi Vs Sith

Chapter XXV: Jedi Vs. Sith

Leia Skywalker stood before her twin brother:

War-torn.

Injured.

Underfed.

Under-loved.

Undertrained.

Her mind in pieces, much like her heart. Lightsaber in hand—the blue blade shining a dazzling weapon—unsure of her actions till another force took over her, controlling her doings till she stood a mere meter away from Luke Skywalker.

She could see a lightsaber hung from her brother's waist, yet he didn't reach for it, confusing her—further enraging her.

"Leia," she heard Luke's voice, calm to the point of absurdity. "You don't want to do this."

 _Yes. I do._ She thought as she got ready to strike. _I have to!_

But she didn't yet attack. It was the fact that the weapon was so foreign to her, at least she told herself that. Whose lightsaber was she holding? Must be of one of those Jedi…

The Jedi! Just to think of them, know that they were there watching her pain—

She swung the lightsaber, throwing without thinking the blue blade towards where her brother's head was. She cringed at her own actions, realizing what she would've done had he not ducked to avoid her attack.

"I don't want to do this!" Luke cried, now many meters apart from her. She smiled, a small, twisted grin that held no happiness. She could hear it in his voice, a small note of fear, and she relished on it. She was on her way of breaking his façade.

Having been so long since she last felt peaceful, she couldn't help but to deeply envy Luke's Jedi mask of tranquility. It was a mask. She was sure. No human being could ever have so much peace.

"You know how to stop me!" Leia screamed, slowly pacing in circles and getting again closer to her target. "Stop your foolishness and _do_ come home!"

"Leia… You need to learn how to listen. I've meant what I said, though you refuse to hear: I am a Jedi, like our father once was."

"He woke up! He learned their true colors! Their evil ways… Their weaknesses!"

"You're dying of curiosity," Luke and Leia again faced each other. Leia pointed the blade at him again. He cautiously kept his distance. "You want to know what really happened: Why he became a Sith… Why did he leave the Jedi."

"I am dying of many things… but I do not care to hear Jedi manipulation!"

"Manipulation? Is that what you call the truth?"

"Shut up!"

"This could go on for a while," a slightly sarcastic voice said behind them. Leia glanced slightly to see the old man. Kenobi. Hating him.

"How'd they convince you, Luke?" Leia demanded. "What brilliant means did the Jedi employ to make you turn your back on your family?"

"I have not turned my back on my family, my dear sister. I am here, facing you. And may I point out it is _you_ who has our father's weapon pointed with a fierce glare—"

"What?"

"You're holding Anakin Skywalker's last lightsaber as a Jedi."

"You're lying!"

"He built it with his own skilled hands, as a young, hopeful man. I bet he never would've expected for it to end in the hands of one of his children, while considering killing the other."

 _It's not possible._

"H—how're you so sure?"

"I am fairly familiar with it, Leia. It was the weapon I used when I began my training here."

Leia's hands trembled as they clung to the Jedi weapon. She wanted to throw it away, no matter who's was it. She felt it burned her hands.

"How come the rebel had it?" Leia asked, deciding she was so far along it was better to know as much as possible.

"I gave it to him. During our last mission together. We were in Corellia. You know the place? Beautiful land. Brave people. You wouldn't have recognized it that night."

Leia felt a new pounding beneath her chest, remembering the images she saw, showing her Luke rescuing Jule. The destruction the Empire caused in Coronet City. Her own traumatic experience running for her life…

"Try me." She said. "So, there was a battle, and treacherous fool that you are, took the rebels' side. Bombs fell from the sky. You lost."

"Yes, that's pretty much what happened." he didn't seem surprised that Leia should know all that.

"You took… Jule away."

"Yes."

"Where was Harxsh—her brother, in all of that?"

"At the other side of the city. I suppose he managed to escape back to the base. That's where I had left Father's lightsaber."

"Don't call it that. You told him to give it to me?"

Luke waited a few moments. "He must've known that was my intention—ah!"

A crowd of rocks were lifted from the ground, they rose through the foggy air and towards Luke with vehement force. Many managed to get him, at last he managed to send them away with his lightsaber—careful of not directing any on Leia's direction.

"What was that for?" Luke said, slightly breathless yet fearless; the green blade hanging from his hand.

Leia couldn't fight the tears that were burning at the corners of her eyes. Her face was a violent crimson shade just holding back the impulse. She turned her back on her brother, and said, "I was right," her voice was low as if she didn't want to be heard. "You put those visions inside my head!"

"You needed to know," Luke said and Leia had to put her free hand over her mouth to prevent the sound of heartbreak to show. "No words either of them could say could've had enough impact to make you understand—"

Leia jumped on him even as she grunted. Luke deflected her attacks, but it was obvious he couldn't just stand there all calm. He had to fight back or die. Leia's arms ached with horrible strength, moving so quickly after so many months in which she hadn't used her lightsaber made her attacks slow and almost, almost sloppy. As the two blades clashed with supreme ferocity, Leia couldn't help but to resent how well Luke dueled her.

It had never been like this, she was sure; when they practiced together there were moments in which one dominated the other, but in the end: it was a fair fight. They were always equals. She grunted and screamed in despair, hating that the fact no longer remained.

Her legs could hardly support her. She jumped in the air and heard the clacking her bones made. She felt an agonizing pain under her ribs. Her back was on fire. Her whole self suffering.

Yet she didn't give up.

There was no alternative.

Feeling like she needed a second to gather her breath, she tried using the Force to send rocks his way and at least distract him, but they barely moved and the simple attempt left her exhausted, so that when again Luke swung his lightsaber towards her, he brushed her skin. Her left shoulder felt the fire and she fell to the ground.

"Leia!" Luke screamed.

He ran to pick her up but just then Leia grabbed the hilt of the lightsaber tighter and angrier than ever, and went for his head; his own green blade protected him; and she saw the two bright colors blinding her. They made a blue and green cross where just behind she could barely distinguish her twin's face. She was sure it was the same for him. And she was right, as he held on to his weapon to avoid hers from reaching his face, he saw splashes of gold amidst her broken brown glance.

They stayed like that for an agonizingly long time, one wrong movement and it was it. One head would flow. One of them would be victor.

Her pain and weaknesses didn't matter anymore. Something dark was fueling her actions, giving her power. The tears that fell down her face burned and his voice and words were lost. She felt her throat closing with pain for a lack of air, she instinctively wanted to put her hands on her neck and gasp for air; she felt as all strength left her body, feeling like she was about to die, she threw her father's lightsaber away and collapsed for about ten seconds.

When she recovered, she rolled her body over and saw Luke standing, looking taller than he actually was, before her. He now had both lightsabers in his hands.

Leia's chest went up and down, again and again, she felt he was still choking her, but only her weeping tormented her now. He walked and got closer, he kneeled and she saw, startled, his own eyes flashed splashes of yellowish shades.

He was angry.

He had not expected this fight.

Leia couldn't begin to wonder what was going on through his mind, all she could focus on was pain.

"Why does it have to be this way?" she heard Luke's voice, full with rage and reproach, though she was sure those feelings weren't directed towards her. "What else do I have to do?"

She heard him make noises that resembled a mad man, similar to the ones she had done earlier herself.

She tried to speak but her voice was nowhere to be found. She tried through the Force _: "Brother."_ There wasn't much there could really be said. _"My brother!"_

She saw his own eyes sparkle with the hint of tears, his own emotions she could feel; the Jedi mask completely fell off.

"I wanted something different," he said out loud. "The galaxy needs us!"

" _It has our parents,"_ Leia said through the Force. _"Don't give up on them! They love us! We have to trust them! Why do you believe strangers before them?"_

"You refer to the Marr siblings. You still believe Jule and Harxsh are just a pair of rebels that I happen to blindly trust? No, Leia. They were the last straw, the final prove I needed to leave home."

" _Why did you leave?"_ Leia's mind burned for that answer.

"I had wondered about the Jedi since infancy. I just never could understand that part of history, so blurry and confusing as it was told. During one of my trips alone—I encountered a group of rebels. They were still at the beginning stages. They didn't know I was the prince—the way they expressed about the Empire, about our parents, made me want to kill them! But they didn't seem evil, but simply desperate. Coming home, I couldn't help but to look at our parents differently. Father, I could easily see him as a dictator. Oh you now know how he is! But he was always away from home; and so I watched mother, and she was an absolute angel. I couldn't doubt her. Until…" he stopped his story for a moment. His eyes were blue and sad now. "I met Jule, she came to the palace in Coruscant in hopes of seeing our mother. She was brutally kicked out of the place. I went after her, and she was in such passionate anger… she revealed everything to me."

Leia stared at her brother, immobile on the ground.

"The story, I am now sure is a hundred percent true. Leia, you and I… we were NOT born in Naboo as we were led to believe! Our father wasn't even present during the childbirth because then… Oh it happened just as the Old Republic fell. He… he attacked out mother." He struggled with his own words. "We could've all died if it wasn't for Master Kenobi. Yes, him." Leia had curved her head slightly to see the old Jedi, who looked deeply in thought and without an ounce of the sarcasm he had displayed before. "He helped our mother escape. This was all in the Capital, and reaching what was called the lower regions of Coruscant, he met with Jule and Harxsh as they were just kids. They helped us! We owe them our lives! Do you understand?" he threw his hands across the air, amazed. "And you know how they were repaid for doing such unselfish good deed? Being turned away. They lived in poverty for years till they joined the rebellion! And the Queen? She had promised to help them but she went to Naboo and never came back. I can't support their Ruling. I will help bring down the Empire. Leia, I'm not even sorry. It is only fair! And I need your help."

She dragged her body across the mud, trying to get up. She was crying still, though more quietly. Luke walked by her side. Stopping, he reached over and tied the lightsaber hilt to her waist. "You're gonna need it," he said, his voice almost recovered. "I trust you, Leia. I will help you heal, and then you can learn the _true_ ways of the Force. You need to get to know the Light."

She blinked strongly, tired of all her tears.

"I met Master Kenobi just after meeting with Jule and Harxsh. I searched him myself after hearing the true version of history. It makes me ache, Leia. Like nothing else. The way our Father betrayed the Jedi. Oh we don't have to talk about it right now. Let me help you into the hut. You'll get to know Master Yoda and Master Kenobi later…"

Leia flinched at his touch. She moved her trembling lips, struggling to let a word out.

"What?" Luke gently asked.

"D…don't…" she muttered a low whisper.

"What?" Luke repeated his question.

"D—DON'T!" Leia's voice broke, her vocal chords shrilled as if ripped apart by a knife. "Don't!" she repeated every time he tried helping her in any way.

"Oh, Leia, please—" Luke tried.

"Let her go," the voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi said. "Told you it wasn't time. The girl is broken, she cannot take any more, Luke. This is cruel."

"The Dark Side controls her still," Yoda sighed.

"I can't leave her," Luke muttered as if in despair.

Leia kept dragging her body, every part burning at every attempt. Oh they did not have control over her! They did not get to decide what should be done about her. What she should think or feel. Because she didn't know it herself.

The only thing she knew was that the Jedi man called Kenobi was right: she could not take anything else in.

She felt panic and dread at the uncertainty of what was to become of her. She prayed to the Force for some guidance—anything she would take.

Her brother was lost, life as she knew it completely forgotten. Did she have anything else left in the world at all?

Her mind, or her heart, showed her a face that had never disappointed her before. She saw Han's dark green eyes gleam at her. His handsome smile free of worry searching for her. He would not leave her, no matter what he sometimes said. Even if he didn't love her she was sure there was something between them, and she needed him. She needed his arms as any other time she had felt the world was about to end. Fear of death and attack could be bear with him by her side. It could not be too late. It could not be the end for her!

She kept dragging her frail and injured body, not knowing what direction she was taking, she felt the disgusting dirt and strange plants covering her skin and ripping her clothes but it didn't matter. The Millennium Falcon was somewhere in this planet and by the Force, she would find it.

Her vocal chords were still damaged but she tried with all her might, her need to see him and the strength that she always had had: "H—han," she muttered his name, knowing he had to be close. He would always respond to her call. "Han!" she screamed, still moving at a slow pace but never stopping. "Haaan!"

She would not give up; the scoundrel had to at some point hear her!

"HAN! HAN!"

She felt her strength running out again. There were black spots in front of her, her eyes were closing. Was she wrong? Would she die alone in the middle of this misty fog of a nightmare?

He felt his hands; that touch now so familiar for her. He carried her in his arms, whispering her name, telling her things were going to be all right. Was this a dream? Had she lost her mind?

She felt and heard the metallic clattering of steps aboard the Falcon. She gasped as if unable to believe it and fought to set herself free.

Han letting go of her, she fell to the ground, collapsing and horribly, her mind cleared.

"Oh, Your Majesty!" C-3PO cried, worriedly.

"What the hell?" Han cried bewildered. "What the hell happened?"

She rolled around and passed her hands over her chest, feeling for her beating heart.

"Who did this to you, Princess?" Han demanded, a dangerous tone of rage on his rough voice. "That Prince of yours is useless if he can't even protect you against the creatures of this planet!"

"Oh Master Luke!" 3PO moaned. "Is he all right? No, Captain Solo. There is no one who could defeat the young Prince. Oh Princess, you didn't find him! He's still lost!"

"No, he's not. I saw him with my own eyes," Han cried.

Leia tried getting up, she just managed to sit, clasping her knees on the floor of the Millennium Falcon.

"Princess?" Threepio inquired. "Did you find him? Where is he? Is he alright? Is poor R2-D2 with him? Should we search for him—"

"Shut up!" Leia cried, gathering her breath. "He's—fine."

"But who did this to you, Princess?"

"Threepio… stop…" the droid wouldn't calm down with his questions. At last Leia cried. "He did it!" There was a moment of silence. "Luke dueled me! This is the result… oh don't anyone tell me how I look!" her voice shook enraged.

"He…" Han muttered slowly, his eyes full of fire. "I'm gonna kill him. Goddamn it, I will kill him!"

"Stop!" Leia screamed. "Chewie, please stop him!"

The Wookiee wrestled the ship's captain, at last Han was on the floor next to Leia. He cursed nastily. "Leia, after what he did to you… he almost killed you! And you still worry about him? You still defend him? Or do you think I can't hold against that rich prick?"

"I need to get out of here," Leia said in a tone that left Han stunned and quiet. "Please, get me out of here. Han, I am counting on you. Get me out of here!"

"But—but," C-3PO stammered. "He is here? How can we leave him behind then?"

"He's not coming!" Leia screamed, and the realization, saying the words out loud, confirming it, made her almost faint. "He. Is. Not. Coming."

There was a moment of silence, Han, now aware of what was happening, tried to speak softer and to soothe her, but she just insisted, pretty much begging, on getting out of there.

Han got up, he helped her up, too, and walked her to the cabin. "W—where—"

"Don't ask me. Just fly the Falcon out of Dagobah. Please."

He gently laid her down on the bed, she was really dirty but it didn't matter. Leia knew nothing of the world as she felt the ship rise and jump across space. She closed her eyes and received the much necessary relief of sleep. Devoid of thought or dreams.

A sweet and deserved moment of peace.


	26. Coruscant

Chapter XXVI: Coruscant

Princess Leia didn't know how long she had been asleep, and at that point, there was no way she could care. Slowly peeling her eyes open, she saw first the tall ceiling, she felt for her surroundings, and palpating them, knew she was still in the Millennium Falcon's bed; little by little she sat up, till she heard a quiet: "Don't."

Alert as if waiting for some danger or evil to befall her, so accustomed to it that she was expecting it, she twitched painfully till she saw Han, standing a few feet from her. "Don't rise," he said, unusually tender. "Keep sleeping."

She let her head fall into the pillows again, the action being so hurtful she groaned aloud.

She didn't turn to see him, but she heard Han's steps as he neared her. He kneeled by the bed. "I really, like you can't imagine, hate to bother you right now," he said, "but we need a destination. We need a place to go. Leia… you need medical attention."

She nodded, her facial features distorted in every single ache she had been ignoring for a while. Every past scar, every failed battle. All appeared before her now that she had nothing else to do but to focus on them.

She spoke in a weak, painful and low voice: "I had promised to pay you to take me to Corus—"she stopped a moment to gather her breath. "To Coruscant. Let's go there. My… mission is over. There's no other place to go."

Han considered this. "Wouldn't it be better," he cautiously said, "to go to your home? I can take you to Naboo."

She took a deep breath. Naboo… her home. Her birth place. No matter what Luke said—

"No," she said, the threat of tears beneath the surface. "No."

"But why—"

"I can't face them," Leia said, thinking of her parents. "I cannot face them yet. I just can't."

Han nodded. "I understand." It didn't matter if he did or not; she appreciated his attempt to soothe her. He stood up and gave a small, very soft kiss to the top of her head. Then he left.

* * *

Leia was so lucky as to constantly fall in and out of consciousness. There were no more painful thoughts and memories. When she was awaken, she could focus on nothing but physical pain; and when she fell from the conscious world, well everything went absolutely black.

In a moment in which she was screaming and moaning madly—though most certainly without being aware of it— she heard words, which she detested at the moment. "Leia! Leia!"

"Oh, Your Majesty!"

"Oohh," Leia cried tears of blood, releasing blood-curling screams. "Ahhh."

She felt a quick and sharp prickling on her left arm, after that, again a devoid black.

Opening her eyes to awareness again was less painful, mainly because she was heavily sedated. She saw golden all around. _Not Sith's eyes._ She immediately pushed the thought away. "Threepio," she sighed, relieved.

"Oh, Princess. Are you all right?"

She shook her head.

"Let me get Captain Solo—"

"No," Leia interrupted in a stiff voice. "Let him fly in peace."

"Oh but he specifically ordered me to inform him when you wake up."

She considered this. "Either way. I prefer to be alone right now." She wasn't sure this was the truth.

"Oh, so you want me to go?"

She very faintly managed to grin. "No. Stay."

Some time afterwards, Han walked into the cabin again. He frowned at 3PO. "Didn't I tell you…?"

"I told him to leave you alone." Leia said. "I don't want to stress you any more than necessary."

"That's kind of you, but you don't stress me at all… Leia…"

"Yes?"

He took a deep breath. "We're close to Coruscant. Should be there any minute now."

"Okay."

"It's just… Well, you see…"

She stared at him and wished she had the strength to roll her eyes.

"We're going to be asked by the Empire if we have permission to land," Han finally gathered the courage to say. "What do we do?"

She remembered for a moment what happened the last time she tried using her name and supposed influence in this type of affair. "Help me rise, please," she said, making an effort to leave the bed.

He was by her side in a second, giving her his strong arms as support. She laid her head on his shoulders, walking, looking at her feet, she realized she was leaving marks of dirt and mud everywhere she trod. She nervously lifted her glance to see him, sure that he would look angry having his so adored ship being treated thus… but he looked only anxious about what was about to happen, and when he met her eye, it was with something that could never hold anger or hate. Warm and soothing.

Chewie welcomed them into the cockpit with a loud growl. Leia was sure that she could almost understand the Wookiee now. She was sure he said something about how she shouldn't be up.

"It's just gonna be a moment, pal," Han said and helped Leia sit down behind them. "Goddamn it, let's just do this!"

A few minutes later, they heard the voice. The usual inquires the Empire demanded of those who traveled through space without its command.

At last it was the question, "Do you have permission to land?"

Leia took a moment, assured that they were all staring at her. "This is Princess Leia," she said as if unconvinced. "Princess Leia of the Skywalker Empire. Leia of Naboo. Daughter of Queen Amidala and Darth Vader." _Or am I? Who am I really… "_ I demand to be allowed into the Capital. _"_ I—I want to fly into the hangar of the Skywalker Castle."

"How ridiculous did I sound?" she whispered at Han's ear. "How long till they try to attack us? Will it take more than a minute to kill me?"

"Shut up," Han whispered, shaking his head.

The Empire didn't take long to respond, yet for the passengers aboard the Millennium Falcon it was agonizingly, cruelly a long time.

They were allowed to fly into Coruscant. They were allowed to direct toward the Skywalker Castle. The imperials even said a goodbye to Princess Leia

Han didn't even fly the Falcon for about half a minute, too stunned about the outcome which he had expected to be far worse…

"It's gotta be because it's the capital," the smuggler said confidently.

Oh it was more than that. Had they tried this a month back it probably would've been more difficult. But nowadays, there was not a place in the galaxy where anyone who even resembled the princess wouldn't be treated as such.

Anakin and Padmé were too desperate. The Emperor had commanded to allow anyone who called itself one of his children to travel and land wherever they pleased. Anakin could not stand hearing of another situation like the one in Corellia.

Destroyed as Coronet City was, there didn't lack establishments filled with grandeur and security for the Emperor and Empress.

Ever since they heard that horrifying recording: _"This is Princess Leia of the Galactic Empire! Stop firing at this ship!"_ … Anakin and Padmé immediately directed themselves to Corellia, and so heartbroken Padmé was about the possibility of her young daughter being dead that she couldn't focus on anything else.

If one good thing came from all this tragedy was how closer the husband and wife grew in the past few months. It would've seemed logical to have expected for the opposite, but their constant states of fear, suffering and anger bound them together. They were always there for each other; couldn't have survived any other way.

The large mansion they've been occupying in Corellia had many great rooms, but Anakin and Padmé hardly ever left the Throne Room, keeping track of everything that happened in the galaxy that was of importance. Supposedly. Anakin often left the mansion to search the planet, though he was convinced that Leia wasn't there anymore.

* * *

Han Solo could hardly keep his cool and act his usual confident self. Landing the Millennium Falcon in the hangar of the Skywalker Castle in Coruscant, he was welcomed by a parade of soldiers and guards, whom immediately rounded them to interrogate them. Han turned to Leia, she was in his arms, barely with enough strength to stay up, let alone speaking.

"Oh but what kind of welcoming is this!" cried C-3PO, appalled. "Can't they see the Princess is so injured?"

Chewbacca growled something in agreement.

Han stood there unsure of what to do. When Leia almost slipped from his grip, he put himself together. "All right!" he cried. "Is there a medical center close by or something? Princess Leia is very ill!"

A stranger appeared before them, Han couldn't stray his eyes from the princess to inspect, but judging by C-3PO's reaction, and everyone's, this person had some level of power because everyone obeyed as she ordered for the crowd to open and for the princess to be brought inside.

Han ran after this person, the princess feeling colder and colder in his arms.

"What exactly happened to her?" the person guiding Han asked.

"Absolutely everything," Han growled, not exactly with sarcasm.

"Take her to the medical room."

Two white-clothed servants appeared, and they took Leia from Han's arms. Only after forcing him.

"Don't resist! Let her go!"

Han had no choice but to allow the princess out of his sight. He stood in the lobby, staring up at the large carpeted stairway, where just ahead, a fainted Leia, carried by many people, disappeared.

Han tried to convince himself this was a good thing. She was in one of her castles, taken to be checked, probably by the best healthcare in the galaxy. She needed this attention, and nowhere, certainly not with him, could she possibly be better.

Yet his unsteady and violently fast heartbeats were not appeased. His body kept on trembling. He could not get rid of an awful ominous feeling that something horrible was about to happen, and the feeling only grew wild, as from above, at the top of the stairway, revealed from the darkened shadowy hallways, the stranger from before that ordered Leia to be taken away, stood and looked down upon him with eyes Han didn't like nor understood. They were ablaze, astonished in all its emerald green glory. Han could perfectly distinguish them amidst the darkness in which she stood. She was finely and luxuriously dressed. Her gown was a slightly softer green, and so long that it swept the carpeted floors. Her hair was long, loose and fiery; so aflame as were her exuberant eyes.


	27. The Skywalker Castle In Coruscant

Chapter XXVII: The Skywalker Castle In Coruscant

The blazed green eyes glared fiercely at Han. The young girl, though significantly smaller than the Corellian, had the ability of making Han nervous. He thought of looking away, maybe that way she wouldn't go to him, but it was useless. She was already descending the steps on her way to meet him.

Han artfully reached for his blaster—just in case.

"Oh Lady Jade!" C-3PO said, "Is the princess going to be all right?"

The redheaded nodded without looking at the droid. Her eyes fixed questioningly on Solo.

"Ah, Lady," Han said, his tone having more irreverence than he intended. "So you're the Lady of this castle?"

"I will be the one to ask questions," she said, brusquely. "Who are you? Why was Princess Leia with you?"

"So is it really the princess?" a man, uniformed as an imperial appeared and said, his voice filled with incredulity. "Lady Jade, we should probably wait till we have clarification."

"I have no doubt it's her," Jade said. "I saw her with my own eyes. Plus _this_ droid was with her when she first left. It's Princess Leia."

"You don't sound particularly happy at having her back," Han said in an insolent tone. "Suppose you're not gonna be the one to give orders now—"

"Listen you—!" Jade raised her voice in anger but soon put herself together. "I didn't particularly enjoy welcoming her in such a terrible state. I don't know what you did with her, but you're in big, big trouble," she threatened.

"Oh where's the Princess?" 3PO asked, worriedly.

Jade's face almost softened. "She's in the bacta tank, Threepio. Don't worry, she'll be fine."

"Can we see her?" Han asked.

Jade scanned him and Chewbacca scathingly. "No. I don't think it would be appropriate."

"I don't understand why you haven't had them arrested," the imperial man said.

"Arrested?" 3PO cried, shocked. "But they've been flying the Princess all this time while she looked for the young Prince."

"Really?" Jade and the Imperial said at the same time.

"Threepio," Han calmly said, "I think you should wait for Leia—for her Highness to inform everyone of what she's been doing."

"You're right, sir. Forgive me."

"Who the hell are these guys, Threepio?" Jade asked.

"Oh they're—"

"Pilots," Han interrupted.

Jade narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Is that true?"

"Yes," 3PO affirmed. "Princess Leia hired Captain Solo and Chewbacca to fly her here to Coruscant. That was a long time ago, actually; but we've encountered quite a few incidents which prevented us from arriving sooner."

"Well," Jade resumed. "Go and accompany the pilots, droid. For the moment, I don't think they should leave the castle."

"Oh I doubt they would go, Lady Jade."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Princess Leia hasn't paid them—I mean!" 3PO turned frightfully to Han, fearing he had blundered again, but Han grinned quite amused; happy to have an excuse to stay and wait for Leia.

"Just so," Han smiled. "Tell the Princess I'll be waiting."

With that, the two smugglers accompanied C-3PO into a drawing room. Mara Jade, quite angry with the whole situation, walked back to see the state of the Princess.

* * *

It was the strangest thing, Mara Jade was sure, to look at the Princess, usually so strong, put together and fearless, looking so weak and pale… this sickly girl couldn't possibly be Leia Skywalker… and yet she was. Significantly thinner, greyish skinned and faint—this was Queen Amidala and Darth Vader's young daughter.

Jade stood by the bed in the medical room of the castle, staring deeply with great sadness at the form of the unfortunate girl, at last defeated and scarred. Even asleep, with her closed eyes, Jade could see and sense the pain that emanated from Leia. _What happened to her?_ She wondered over and over again. _Who could've done this to her?_ It was remarkable to think there was a being in the galaxy who had bested a Skywalker. _Damn rebels!_ Jade thought. _They must've ganged up on her…_ no other explanation. A single person couldn't possibly have gotten Leia in this state… But what were those scars? Leia's white face had scratches all over, her thin shoulders and arms were covered in purple bruises, and she couldn't see them under the many layers and covers but Jade was sure the princess's legs were probably the same.

The redhead passed her hands across her face time and time again, trying to calm her nerves and convince herself things would be fine—yet she couldn't forget Leia's image when she first arrived to the castle. Dragged from a Corellian freighter by a strange, questionable-looking man and a Wookiee. Her clothes all dirty and ripped; her hair and body a mess. _What happened to her?_

And at every second she couldn't help wondering if _he_ had encountered that same fate. The thought was so unbearable she had to push away tears. Suddenly the doors opened and she jumped, startled. The medical droid had comeback along with three doctors they brought from the city.

"We need to continue with the rehabilitation," the medical droid said.

"Now?" Mara shook her head. "Is it completely necessary? Can't she sleep for a little longer?"

"I'm afraid it's quite urgent, Miss. Don't worry, she'll barely be conscious of anything."

Mara shook her head, nervously. She bit at her nails and approached the princess, never pitying her more than at that moment. "All right," she agreed.

Two men stood at either side of the bed and forced the princess to get up.

"Careful!" Mara cried, terrified at the screams Leia released.

She got closer again and tried to help the princess sit up. Leia said nothing coherent and just cried out in pain. Mara helped brush Leia's long hair out of the way so she could put her a robe that could conceal her better before those strange men; passing a hand over her neck, the Princess screamed again. Mara Jade gasped and paled as she searched Leia's back and saw a terrible lightsaber wound. She could now see that one of her shoulders had also received a lightsaber attack, she just didn't notice before because it was hidden under the blackened, purple-bruised skin…

Taking a trembling step back, unable of looking at Leia in such state, Mara closed her eyes shut, and shed silent tears. She put both hands over her mouth to prevent any sob.

All she could do then was wait. She just couldn't speak to anyone right now. Just wait, and in vain fight herself to be convinced Luke hadn't suffered the same.

* * *

Minutes passed like hours, hours passed like days; at last, Mara heard a knock on her door, a servant informing her the Princess was better now, again resting in the bed of the medical room.

Mara left her own bedroom and raced to get to the other side of the castle. Passing by many large windows, she saw Coruscant's night sky already very advanced. The many city lights shone as during any other evening, completely careless of the tragedy and mischief the world was facing.

Entering the room, Mara took a deep breath, trying to prepare herself for what she was about to see…

The princess was up, she laid on the bed with her eyes staring at the ceiling, immobile and mute. Approaching her, Mara made an effort to smile at Leia, something the princess didn't return, which Mara also didn't expect.

Mara's smile grew as she saw the princess already looking much better. She sat by her side and took her small hand, white and without imperfection again. Her long arms were as thin as in the morning, but the bruises and scars were healing, making her not so hard to be seen.

"I see you're much better," Mara smiled softly, "I am so glad, Leia."

Leia didn't move, only her brown eyes, which Mara noted were incredibly different, melancholic and filled with sadness, moved to see her. "Are they," Leia breathed slowly, almost unwilling to ask, "here?"

Mara knew whom she meant. "No, my dear."

Leia sighed in relief. "And have they… been here lately?"

Mara nodded. "The Emperor stopped coming for a while… Then he and your mother spent a few weeks in, but then they heard—heard you were captured, and left. They haven't been here in a standard month, Leia."

"Both of them?" Leia's voice was chilling. "My mother left Naboo? She was _here_?"

Mara nodded.

A few minutes of silence later, Leia asked, "Do they know I'm here?"

"No, Leia. There have been a few false alarms to quite—terrible outcomes. So it was decided to not contact the Emperor until we were sure it was you. Don't worry, I'll let them know immediately—"

"No!" Leia screamed. "Please don't," her voice lowered to a whisper. "Do not, under any circumstances let them know I'm here. I beg you, Mara. Make sure no one tells them."

"I promise," Mara nodded, very confused.

"Where are my friends?" Leia asked in her tired voice.

"Uh? Oh the pilots… the Corellian and the Wookiee?"

"Those are the ones."

"They're here in the castle. They're guarded so they won't escape—"

"What? Where exactly?"

"In one of the drawing rooms."

"That's ridiculous! Is it night time now?"

"Yes."

"Show them to a room. They must be so tired. Have they eaten?"

"Um no… Leia I didn't think—"

"Send Chewie—the Wookiee, to Threepio's room. Give the droid an oil bath and send food for the Wookiee."

"All right." Mara nodded, standing up and walking to the door. "What about the man?"

"Show him to my room."

"What?!" Mara cried, scandalized.

"To my room, Mara. He can sleep there."

Mara stood still for a moment, wondering if the princess was delirious. At last, quite unwillingly, she followed Leia's orders.

* * *

Han kept pacing inside the drawing room, his face oddly nervous, his whole demeanor unlike himself.

It had been a horrible day. Kept inside that fancy room like prisoners. Unable to ask anything regarding Leia's health. He couldn't forget the last time he saw her… crumbling, defeated in his arms… the beautiful princess unrecognizable.

"We should go see what's happening," he cried. "Chewie, you can break that door. Come on, you've been useless all day!"

The Wookiee growled, telling him to sit down.

"Captain Solo, that would be vandalism." C-3PO cried. "Lady Jade would be very angry."

"To hell with her! Who does she think she is? What is she, like, a cousin or something?"

"No, sir."

"She a royal?"

"No, sir."

"Then why is she ruling this castle? Why does everyone follow her orders? Who the hell—"

The doors opened, and Mara Jade walked in.

Han stared at her with supreme dislike, the feeling being obviously mutual. He hated her scathing looks, observing Han as if he were the lowest creature in the castle.

"Threepio go to your usual room," she commanded.

Han snorted. "What, even the droid has his own room here?"

Mara ignored this remark. "Take the Wookiee with you, he can sleep in there."

C-3PO didn't look thrilled but he obliged.

"Captain Solo," she then said. "Come with me I'll escort you to… to a room where you can sleep."

"I am not tired. Where's Leia?"

" _Princess Leia_ will spend the night in the medical room."

"Can I see her?"

"No. She didn't request your presence so that's out of the question."

"She didn't? Well… maybe she wasn't well enough to speak. I am sure she wouldn't mind if I enter for a few minutes—"

"No," Mara roughly denied. "Come with me. _Silently_ , if you please."

Han nodded, sulkily, deciding it was better than being shut in this room all night.

He walked inside the room she indicated him, and, quite viciously, shut the door in her face. Without thinking, he threw himself in the bed. And though he had not realized before, he was really tired, and in seconds he fell asleep.

* * *

Morning arrived all too soon. Han moved around the spacious bed, hating himself for how well-rested and comfortable he woke up feeling. Removing the soft, warm covers from his body, he sat up in the delightful mattress and passed a hand over his face; rubbing his eyes and trying to remember everything that had happened the day before.

He was in a castle.

The realization finally dawned on him. He was in one of the Emperor's homes, in what he was sure was one of the most stunning rooms. He looked around the surroundings, taking them all in; the fancy, lavish feel startled him. It was so different than what he was used to—especially the last few months flying one of the most hated women in the galaxy.

 _Leia_. Suddenly she appeared to take over his mind. He felt she was with him, the room smelled sweet and feminine. He rose and walked around, and in a matter of seconds, he realized with the happiest and satisfied mind, that this was Leia's bedroom in the castle.

The large ceiling had a few chandeliers, the architecture was nothing like the futuristic and technological feel Coruscant always had; it was that classical beauty ancient planets like Naboo and Alderaan usually held. The walls, pink and purple were splashed with trophies, papers of recognition, everything she had earned in her short life. Many moving images also caught his attention. Most showed Leia as a little girl, small and always dressed in soft colors like white, as she got older her robes changed to black. By the nigh table, reflecting with a strange effect in front of the mirror, was a more recent holovid. Startled, Han felt sudden hate, watching what he assumed was a sixteen or seventeen year old Princess with a blond boy, richly dressed. That must be Luke Skywalker…

He turned his back on the moving image, instead, he walked to inspect the rest of the room. Opening a few drawers, he found one filled with nothing but weapons. He casually picked up a few. Moving on, he found her closet. A gigantic space that was an entire other room on its own. He walked around, the clothes started moving by themselves, he didn't know how he had started that, so he couldn't imagine a way of turning it off. Then he heard a knock on the door, but the person outside didn't wait, and just entered.

Han cursed and left the closet to return to the bedroom; he was ready to be scolded by Lady Jade. And indeed, there stood the stern red-headed young girl that seemed to dislike him so much, but next to her, stood Princess Leia.

"What were you doing back there?" Jade demanded. "Don't you try to steal anything, I swear—"

"Mara, stop yelling," Leia said in a muffled voice, softly closing and opening her eyes. "It's too early for that."

Han smiled. A large smile. He couldn't help it—he was so happy to see her again. It felt like a lifetime had passed since they were together, though it was only less than a day.

"Perhaps he was looking for some clothes…" Leia gently said. "Do me a favor, please. Get him something to wear."

Mara Jade's mouth dropped.

"Right now," Leia pressed. "So he can have a shower—he rather needs one."

Mara had no choice. She nodded and quite unwillingly, left them alone.

"Seriously, though," Leia said, approaching the bed, "what were you doing in there?"

Han cleared his throat. "Got lost, Princess. This room is huge. Is yours… isn't it?"

"Yes," she nodded and sat on the bed.

Han watched her deeply, the confirmation of having slept on her bed making him suddenly very… nervous. He watched her, on the bed where just before he'd been sleeping and joined her there.

But no more words could pass between them, a crowd of servants broke into the bedroom unannounced and uninvited.

"Oh thank you," Leia said, her face showing no gratitude as two handmaidens walked her to the fresher. "Ahh!" she screamed.

"What? What?" Han cried, running to her. "What—oh…"

The handmaidens had taken Leia's clothes off; Leia stared abysmally at her reflection on the many mirrors. "Don't look!" she cried, in distress.

"I'm sorry," Han said, turning his back and gulping.

"Goddamn it, I look terrible," Leia sighed.

Han carefully and discreetly sneaked another glance. He was of another opinion.

"That bacta tank is a wonder," he awkwardly said. "You're healing very fast."

"I should've killed him!" Leia whispered as the handmaidens walked her in her naked state.

Han then again heard her whimper, crying that the water was too cold, then too hot, and then she just said nothing and showered for a long time, kicking everyone out.

Han remained sitting by the bed, unwilling to leave her again in spite the servants' comments. When Leia returned in a white towel, she looked almost sweet, if it weren't for the pain her eyes still carried.

"Your turn," she said shyly. The handmaidens stared at each other. "He can do that alone," Leia said, looking down.

Han entered the fresher, and when he went back again, Leia was gone, and a ridiculous outfit laid on the now made bed.

"Damn Lady Jade," cried the smuggler. He wouldn't be seen dead on those clothes… but it's not like he had a choice.

When dressed up, he left the room and descended the stairway, trying to find Leia or Chewbacca.

It was a different treatment he received now. When he passed by a guard he wasn't scanned as if thought dangerous; when he accidently met a servant they would bow to him. He asked for C-3PO and the Wookiee and was immediately shown to the dining room.

At the farthest corner, sat Leia, and Han thought she had never looked more like a princess before. A soft, long black dress graced her lean figure; her hair was almost loose, a braided crown of her own hair revealed her pretty facial features. She wore no jewelry but it was not necessary because her look was sweet and simple. Next to her sat Chewbacca, and standing with them was the protocol droid.

The Wookiee immediately cried out something loud when he saw Han.

Han's cheeks turned slightly crimson. "Shut up, it was all the clothes they could give me."

Leia laughed softly. "I think you look handsome, actually," she said.

Han sat by her side. "Don't get used to it, though."

A great banquet was served for them. Leia stared at it with as much awe as Han and Chewbacca. She had forgotten such luxury even existed. There was so much food, only delicacies that she loved. She wanted to devour everything and at once.

"Careful." Han advised. "Little by little. Otherwise you might get sick."

She didn't want to hear that. She looked at the banquet fearing it would at some point disappear. She grabbed great chunks of everything. She tasted every soup. Many glasses. Every plate. And just like Han had warned, she started feeling very badly. Her tummy ached. Her head was dizzy… How horrifying. Was there anything she'd ever enjoy again? Life would forever be tainted by the latest experiences?

Never a young face looked so saddened. The Princess stared down at her lap, her hands clasped together. Not a word escaping her.

"You alright, Leia?" Han asked, getting closer.

There was no point in lying, after all, he knew everything that had happened. She didn't answer.

"Are you done?"

She just nodded, very low energy.

"All right… hey that garden outside looks very pretty. Why don't we go around for a walk?"

"No thanks—"

He had already stood up. He was beside her, offering his arm in the most gallant of ways, gaining a very faint smile from the Princess.

"You guys stay here," Han said to the Wookiee and droid.

He wrapped his arm around the Princess, providing warmth and comfort. Leia laid her head on his broad shoulder, and she herself threw her arms around his waist. Han laid a few kisses to the top of her head, just as they passed by a bewildered Mara Jade.

"L—leia?"

"We're taking a stroll around the castle," Han smiled in a way he knew would make Mara hate him more. Leia said nothing, she cuddled and took refuge in his arms. When they were by the front door, Mara heard the Princess whimper and scream; but it was in—Jade could hardly believe it—a very giddy and happy way. Han had picked Leia up as if she were no heavier than a small doll, and he carried her outside as the Princess laughed.

Mara Jade madly shook her head. She ran to her room, trembling at every step, unsure of her own actions, hating herself and life. _This needs to be done,_ she told herself. Her own anxiety at an all-time high; she resisted the urge to bite her nails, and felt her thumping heart jump, almost bursting from her chest when she saw, amidst the blue image of a hologram, the Emperor's face. His cold, hateful voice cooling her skin, as he asked, "What is it, Miss Jade?"

Mara took a deep breath, and only after making sure her voice would be steady and without tremors, she said, "Your Majesty, Princess Leia is here in the castle."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I was originally going to introduce Mara Jade back in chapter 6, but since she wasn't going to have any importance in the story _yet_ I decided to wait. If you're confused about her role in this universe don't worry, it will be explained :)


	28. Inevitable

Chapter XXVIII: Inevitable

The Emperor's private bedchamber in Corellia was a spacious and fancy room, though the absolute opposite of cozy and homely. The large mansion was guarded at every corner, impenetrable in that war-torn, wasteland of a planet. Anakin didn't spend many nights there, going out searching for at least a trace of his daughter.

It just so happened that on this night he was arriving. He walked slowly towards the lift and found himself on the highest floor, hoping against hope Padmé would still be up. He stared at the bed, hidden behind white veils: she laid with her eyes closed and breathing normal. Anakin sighed and begin changing into his night clothes. He sat on the bed knowing he wouldn't get an hour of sleep anytime soon, and comforted himself with the feeling of having his wife so close—the only thing that kept him together and somewhat sane. He was about to lie by her side when he heard the sound of a comlink. He picked it up angrily and was informed someone was trying to contact him from the Castle in Coruscant.

"At this hour? What could they want! Who is it?"

"Lady Jade, Your Majesty."

Vader growled. Anybody bothering him at the moment would upset him, but that name turned his blood cold and swift with rancor. Watching her young, frightened face only made it worse. "What is it, Miss Jade?" he asked, coldly.

She waited a few moments, draining his inexistent patience, and at last said, as if freeing herself from an incredibly heavy burden, "Your Majesty," her voice almost quivered, "Princess Leia is here in the castle."

Anakin's heart skipped a bit. Then it raced so hard he thought he might die. He shook his head in disbelief. If this was a lie… he couldn't stand it.

"Y—your Majesty, did you hear me?" Mara Jade said, unsure and frightened.

"I did," Vader said, his voice surprisingly put together even when his lips were so dry. He cleared his throat, "Miss Jade, are you sure this is not another false alarm?"

He saw her shake her head. "No, Your Majesty. I've spoken to her. She's really here!" her voice shook with excitement, even amidst the blue image Vader could see tears of maybe happiness in her eyes.

The Emperor smiled and laughed as tears escaped his eyes. "Thank the Force," he muttered, sighing, never before so relieved. His hands covered his face as he took some moments to feel everything he felt.

"But, s-sir," Mara Jade tried to gain his attention again. "She didn't come alone…"

"Luke!" a loud cry rang in the bedchamber. "Oh Luke is with her!"

Anakin turned around to see Padmé, who had awaken and obviously been eavesdropping on the conversation. Anakin turned to see her, somewhat bothered, but forgot about it when he noticed the wild happiness that had exploded on her face.

"Oh my children!" she cried and rose to join her husband.

Anakin put his arms around her; it would've been a truly moving and beautiful scene to witness, if only it wasn't so wrong…

Mara Jade couldn't possibly look any more frightened in the hologram, as she muttered, amidst gritted teeth, clearly hating her words, "No. Luke is not here."

Anakin and Padmé didn't let go of each other. "So what's happening?" Padmé questioned. "Please, Mara, speak!"

"She brought… a man," Mara confessed.

Anakin and Padmé stared wide-eyed at each other, "What?" they cried in unison. "Who?" Padmé asked.

Mara shook her head. "I don't know."

"Listen Jade," Anakin spoke in his most menacing voice, chilling even Padmé. "You better make sure my daughter is there when we arrive. Understand? If she's not: _You_ will pay for it. Am I clear? I don't care if she herself wants to go. If the earth splits in two… You have to make sure she doesn't go! I don't think I have to tell you so plainly… You'll be begging for death if she's not in the castle when I get there."

Padmé usually hated and tried to avoid Vader threatening people, especially poor Mara whom he had always abused. In this case, though… she allowed him. Because she was sure, if again she missed Leia even by a second, if again fate was so cruel as to keep them apart, she wouldn't care about being fair, she wouldn't care about who is really responsible or to blame; she would kill Mara Jade herself.

* * *

There was still that aching feeling on every muscle; the scars though healed hadn't completely gone away.

Princess Leia took a few calming breaths to really take in the instant she was enjoying—actually enjoying. She was in one of her homes; secure, at last, from the war, from every evil in the galaxy. The strong arms that carried her in that jumpy, childish, adoring manner belonged to a man she had grown so accustomed to she was almost afraid of becoming dependent. She couldn't understand how he managed; what power did he have, without the slightest Force sensibility, to make her smile so?

Yet every few random seconds her treacherous mind would show her a traumatic moment from the past: she would see the panic on her ship when they fell under attack and crashed in Tatooine. She would feel that tremulous uncertainty of being chased like a criminal across the galaxy by a dangerous bounty hunter. Feel the explosive anger at being denied freedom when captured by the rebels. The heartbreak at finding traitors even in the closest of friends. The physical pain of being caught in a battle. Buildings falling. Bombs dropped. Learning the image the royal family truly has… Hated by civilians. Doubted and shunned by imperials. Surviving on the charity of rebels. Her own brother's betrayal—

She felt warm lips on her skin, on her own mouth. He couldn't read her mind, he hadn't that power, but he knew always what to do to make her feel better.

She focused on Han again, his handsome face and wandering hands.

Then she would see herself, screaming and crying, dragging herself through the mud of Dagobah. Branches ripping her clothes and skin. Heavy stones bruising her. A fog and dirt blinding her. Strange insects clinging to her…

But that was left behind. The day was beautiful and bright in Coruscant. Han kept carrying her around the castle's grand garden. The smell of flowers covered her nose, sweet was the fragrance embedded in every wind blow.

"Stop," she suddenly said, breathlessly but quite serene.

Han helped her sit on the grass and joined her. He didn't say anything, he placed her on his lap and brought her head to his chest, like when in Corellia aided by the rebels… _Stop_. She closed her eyes, she felt his fingers play with her hair, making it a mess and she didn't mind; they scratched her scalp very gently, taking her to an incredibly relaxing state. "Mmmhh," Leia hummed satisfied as he massaged her shoulders; his hands, with supreme tact going below, arms, ribs, till they rested on her abdomen. She realized there was not a part of her body she wouldn't allow him to touch. "Is this real?" she wondered out loud, dreamily.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Han whispered at her ear, his voice raspy and low.

"I… I am not sure. So much has happened, I hardly know what to believe."

This was such comfort she had forgotten existed… Actually, like she had never known.

"It's real," Han said, his touch being slightly less gentle but just as pleasing.

"It's a dream," Leia corrected. "I had never felt like this…"

"How?" Han questioned.

She didn't even know what to call it.

"Leia?"

No answer. He pressed her harder against his body and she whined.

"I'm sorry," he said, not sounding apologetic at all. "Why don't we go inside?" he asked, suddenly.

"All right," she nodded and she felt as he pushed her to stand up. He took her hand and guided her back to the castle.

* * *

Passing by the main hallway Leia saw her own face, flushed, colored excessively. Within herself, she was thankful of wearing a long dress that at least concealed her shaky legs.

This was such anxiety as she had never experienced before. It was a danger to her heartrate—a pleasure to her insides.

She didn't know what kind of courage she needed to face this moment. One she didn't want to avoid, yet she inwardly prayed she could postpone.

"Are you all right?" she heard Han's voice, his usual one, not like when they sat alone in the garden.

She nodded frantically. "Yes," she said, her tongue very dry.

"Do you want a drink?" he asked with a smile.

She wanted to go to her room and hide from everyone. Especially him.

"Um, sure," she said, very aware of how obviously her chest went up and down. "L-let me call a servant," Leia blurted out.

"That's okay," Han said. "Let's see what you got."

He walked her to the kitchen, passed to the wine cellar, dismissed the servants, and went through a few shelves. "Excellent!" he said. "This is a fine collection." He regarded the many bottles. "Corellian rum, Merlot, brandy…" Leia was biting her nails. "Twister… Chandrillan Bleu… Alderaan Ruge, nice, very fancy…"

Leia thought of Bail Organa and Mon Mothma. Her brain melting with angst and fear. _I'm back…_ she suddenly thought. _What am I going to do?!_ There was only one thing. _They're traitors of the Empire…_

"How about the rum?" Han said, cheerfully.

Leia gulped, again so preoccupied. The effect of Han's miraculous caresses and kisses erased. Tears again crowded. She again hated.

Han stared at her. "What?" he asked, oblivious, still stuck in their previous moment.

Oh what she wouldn't give to be in the same state of mind as him! Only a few minutes ago she was so lucky. How did he do it? She envied it.

"Why were you not affected by everything we went through?" Leia asked, abruptly.

Han blinked, surprised. "Some of it was pretty nasty," he admitted. "But we made it through. It's all behind."

"For you! I can't—I can't forget it!"

"I know," he said, regretfully. "I've noticed."

"From time to time you rescue me from it… Han, how does a person manage to be like you?" she asked that burning question.

"I don't know," he grinned. "Guess by not caring so much."

"But I can't—I mean, how can't you care? The world is a mess! The galaxy is horrible. How do you deal with it?!"

"Leia, is very easy. I know I can't do anything about it!"

She stood silent for a moment. "Maybe that's why I can't stop worrying about it," she then said. "Because _I can_ do something about it." _I should_. "What's all this power good for," she wondered sadly, "if my mind is forever a confounding mess!"

She sat in front of the table, and laid her head on it with a thud. "What should I do!" she cried, frustrated. "What would you do?" she turned to Han Solo.

He waited a moment, considering his answer. "I'd drink," he said, Leia thought, honestly. She laughed.

"Well, give me the hardest drink you can find."

"Do you drink?"

"I'll start."

Han chuckled; he served a glass of Corellian wine for himself and one for Leia.

"This is terrible advice I just gave you," he said, watching Leia devour the wine in one sip.

"You can't possibly do me any more damage. Pour me another… I've heard alcohol makes you forget. I don't want anything more than that!"

"It also makes you foolish, Princess. It fogs your judgment."

"I have no judgment anymore," she blurted out, spitting a little of the bitter alcohol she wasn't used to. "How long does it take?" she asked.

"Guess we're about to find out. Cheers!" he clicked his glass against hers.

The bottle was brand new, but Leia thought nothing of it as she continued to drink glass after glass, despite Han's constant warnings that it was too much and should forget it. But liqueur was bringing her old spirit. Her destroyed will. War didn't exist in her mind. Tragedy was unheard of. And she ordered him around with all her mighty strength, her cute face amusing the smuggler as she bossed him to give her more and more.

"Bottle's over," Han said, half-amused, half-concerned. "I created a monster."

Leia started laughing. Maniacally and for long. She didn't know why but she found that comment hilarious. She watched Han, his own face, as well as everything, even the walls and door seemed hysterical. She banged her hands on the table and wiped away tears. Han joined in her laughter. "What's so funny?" she asked, for a moment serious and then both burst out laughing again. She wanted to drink more. She wanted to take Han and kiss him forever. She felt no fear anymore. No anxiety. No pain. She was giddy and relaxed. Lustful and excited.

"I wish I had met you sooner," she suddenly cried out, perfectly unaware of how liqueur now controlled her tongue and no thought or secret was safe. "I wish you're with me forever…" she threw an arm around him. "I wish…" she said slowly, her wildest dreams, perhaps unknown even to her, right on the surface, "I wish you would take me away, Han. I want to enter the Millennium Falcon and know nothing bad will happen. If only we could travel the galaxy… leave everything and everyone behind… travel from planet to planet—like we've been doing; but not chasing anyone. Not being chased. Not running away… only… Doing nothing but…"

"What?" Han pressed after she stayed silent for a while, her eyes staring dreamily at nothing.

"Love!" she screamed, her voice full of emotion. Happiness she couldn't contain in her chest bursting out.

Han didn't smile or said anything; he picked her up and started kissing her. She responded with mad intensity. Passionate like only he could make her.

With the excitement of people who are in love for the very first time, Han and Leia ran around the castle, climbing the stairway, reaching the Princess's bedroom.

Han locked the door and threw Leia on the bed, he climbed on top of her and directed his lips towards her body—every part he had fantasized for so long, finally his. Leia gripped at his belt, not knowing what she was doing. Not thinking about it. Feeling. Just feeling.

His hands were caressing, passing by and exploring her figure; his eyes gazed upon her worshipfully. He called her name adoringly and heard her do the same. He stopped for a second to see her face, just to read the prime feeling over her features. Happiness. Nothing else. His hands slowly reached over to her dress, bundling it up to her thighs. He brushed his one tanned cheek against her soft, pink ones. He kissed her again on the lips. Long. Hard. "Leia…"

She tensed up for a moment, her whole body froze, causing Han to be heartbroken. He opened his eyes, which had been closed in pleasure, and prepared an apology for maybe having gone too far.

On her face, not flustered anymore but worriedly, deadly white, her trembling lips said his name, "Han…" she whispered terrified like anytime she was afraid and needed his arms for support. "Oh dear!" she sighed.

Han slowly moved away from where he had been, lying on top of her, to be beside her on the bed. "You sounded just like Threepio when he's afraid," he grinned, sadly, almost sobered.

Leia looked as if she hadn't had any alcohol at all. The charm of liqueur suddenly broken. "I'm so afraid… I wish I was dead!" she cried.

Now Han was not only hurt, but offended. "Hey, you're the one who got me drunk and practically seduced me up here… Leia, what is it, really?"

She looked on the verge of a mental, physical, emotional breakdown...

"They're here!" she screamed, her voice breaking, ripped apart with panic. "My parents are here!"

Han sat still for a moment, processing those words, forcing his drunken brain to comprehend the meaning. _They're here._ The Emperor and Empress. Darth Vader and Queen Amidala.

* * *

"Get out of the way!" the Emperor cried as he and his wife descended the Executer.

"Is she here? Is she here?" Padmé cried over and over again.

"She better be," Anakin said, his threatening voice cooling the skin of every servant, guard and imperial in sight.

Husband and wife walked side by side, more steadily than their hearts would ever be again.

* * *

"Leia… please try to calm down," Han said, even while not being very calm himself. He stared at her, shaking, her eyes not even with another tear to shed.

"What am I going to do? What am I going to do?!" she muttered in despair. "I couldn't possibly be more unprepared for this!"

"Okay—then don't do it!"

"They're here," she repeated bitterly. "They're here!"

"Leia, I heard you the first time, Sweetheart. Just breathe and try to be calm—"

His advice proved useless. How could she be anything but freaked out? She put her hands as if they were claws on the covers, wishing to put them over her head and follow Han's ridiculous suggestion.

"If we're quick we can enter the Falcon before they see you," Han said, lying by her side, beginning to sound somewhat calm.

She rolled over to face him, staring into his dark-green eyes and somehow thinking there was some sense to that idea… Was it worth it to at least give it a try? She could feel his warm breath over her face, a burning Corellian liqueur; how different the two of them had been just before! Why did things always fall apart so quickly for her? She didn't know why- but she knew running away would not change it.

She reached over to kiss Han one more time. A soft, small kiss, nothing like what they had shared on this day, but a mere brush against his lips. She saw his confusion and decided to be amused, not pained by it.

She closed her eyes for a moment, pushing every thought, every fear, every desire away, and simply rose from the bed. She accommodated her dress, stood in front of the looking glass, smoothed her hair, releasing it from the messy and destroyed braided crown and just letting it loose. She regarded the reflection of the young girl before her, not bothering to figure it out at all, knowing that trying at the moment would be useless.

 _I will do this._

"I'll be back," she said without looking at Han, who laid in the bed more confused than ever.

"You don't have to do this right now," Han said, gently.

 _I don't have a choice._

"Yes, I do. Please wait here. I'll be back soon…" she gave a few steps towards the door, her feet faltering and almost bringing her to the floor.

Han ran to her. "Really, Leia," he said, seriously, "you are in no condition to see anybody."

"Wait," Leia said, her voice low, "I have an idea." She walked to one of the many drawers and grabbed a bottle of perfume. She practically bathed in it.

"I can still smell the alcohol," Han said, taking her hands and trying to bring her to the bed to sit for a moment.

"That's because you're so close your breath and mine are practically the same…" she muttered; looking up, she saw his eyes gazing upon her lips, indeed so close their breaths mixed.

"No…" Leia shook her head. "I can't kiss you—" she saw the hurt in his eyes and was tempted to laugh. "—not because I don't want to. But because if I do, I won't be able to stop."

Han was left stunned. He didn't react as Leia again broke apart from him, this time managing to cross the door.

* * *

Anakin and Padmé stood in front of the castle's gates, the main entrance, hearts beating at the same time and with the same unhealthy intensity.

"What do you think?" Padmé said, with that voice so weak from passed weeping. "Could she be here?"

Anakin didn't say anything. He didn't even try to feel her presence. The disappointment would be one he could not take if mistaken…

The large, tall doors opened. Guards bowed. The Emperor and Empress entered and stood there.

The silence was unbearable, like that of a funeral or graveyard. As if no living soul was in here. People were scared by the Sith's presence, that was obvious, and they dared not disturb him.

At last, came the sound of steps: delicate, graceful, and small. Despite all that they seemed loud, almost resonating within the castle's halls. At the top of the carpeted stairway, appeared the Princess Of The Skywalker Empire.

Leia stood tall, her head high, holding her breath, watching the two forms of her parents as if they weren't there, as if they weren't real. Nothing was. Her dim sight betrayed her and she didn't dare give a single step for a full ten seconds. Then she did and it didn't matter that her feet were shaky because Anakin and Padmé had ran to her and they were at the top of the majestic stairway in a matter of seconds, capturing her in strong, smothering arms.

"My darling! My little girl!" Padmé was crying and smiling non-stop.

Leia saw her mother's tears and tried to remember the last time she had seen someone weep like that. Certainly she had never seen Padmé so affected by anything. Was it her own face her mind now showed screaming for dear life? Along with that of many others who new death was just around the corner…

"My Princess!" Anakin's voice was softer than she had ever heard before. "My beautiful little Princess! Leia, Finally!" there was relief in his voice that she didn't know was even possible. Moreover, it was disturbing coming from a man she had never known to be ever afraid before.

"Are you all right?" Anakin asked and Leia wasn't sure of why that particular question bothered her; nor was she sure of why there was such a lack of emotion in her. She was drained of feeling.

She nodded, mechanically, and forced her lips into a smile.

"Oh Leia, my child," Padmé covered her with kisses. "Don't worry. Don't be afraid, we're here."

Leia blinked, strongly. The many dreams around her coming together, becoming whole as the pieces of a puzzle put together do. Fantasy gone, reality entering.

She saw Padmé's brown eyes, the familiar sight filling her with strange anguish. Anakin's blues shone from above, paining her heart like the sharpest knife…

The image was clear now, and her actions unconnected to her mind.

"Leia, are you all right my child?" Anakin repeated, fatherly worry on his soft voice.

"F—father!" Leia cried and refuged herself in Anakin's arms, bathing his chest with flooding tears.

Anakin gulped, panic reflecting on his face. Never, not even when she was a small little girl had Leia sought his protection that way… _What happened to her?_ The question burned within his mind with the most horrific possible answers.

"Things will be all right, Leia. I promise," Anakin assured her.

Leia shook her head, she put an index finger over her temple as if it were throbbing painfully.

"And about Luke," Padmé said, her voice still trembling with emotion, "don't worry or blame yourself, my darling. He's fine—he has to be! Oh don't you blame yourself, Leia."

"Now that your safety is assured I can dedicate fully to search him," Anakin said. "My darling, I'm so sorry! It was an impossible mission I bestowed upon you. Forgive me, please. I should've known you weren't ready…"

Even amidst the many things that clouded and prevented Leia from being in her right mind, these comments triggered supreme anger in the Princess. No amount of trauma, pain or alcohol could've prevented the twirling in her belly, that fiery, powerful dragon that spitted fire which flowed through her veins, heating her body, turning her red. That wounded pride of being thought a failure, even if she herself would call her that. It stung to the point her voice was rough and without tremors, as she said, defiantly, "I _did_ find him."

Anakin and Padmé stared at each other, in complete an utter shock. Clearly they hadn't considered this alternative at all.

"You…" Anakin's voice was breathless as his watched his daughter, now proudly. "You…Well, of course! My strong Princess! Oh how could I have doubted you? But… Never mind. Where is he?"

"Leia?" Padmé also asked.

The Princess was silent.

"Leia?" Anakin pressed. "Where is your brother? Where is Luke?!"

"I am here, Father," came the sound of the young Prince, of Luke himself.

Leia closed her eyes shut, willing to respond to her twin brother through their connection, thinking he was revealing himself through the Force… but opening her eyes to inspect, she saw him breaking into the scene, on his way to the stairway.


	29. Rulers Of The Galaxy

Chapter XXIX: Rulers Of The Galaxy

There was a strange energy in the lobby of the Skywalker Castle: the small crowd of family members, finally together after so long, unsure of what emotions were to be felt, what words were more appropriate to be said, whom to look at; who should be questioned.

The daughter seemed the most lost. She stood in between her parents, whom little by little loosened the grip on her, color rushing and draining from their faces. Too much astonishment within their hearts.

Luke kept walking towards them with a very normal pace, though it seemed, for the other Skywalkers, that he gave painfully and awfully, cruel slow steps.

He was just below them when he ceased his pacing, and no word could be uttered when Padmé's heart finished healing, as she could hold her son again. She spoke words of love, relief and happiness; bathing Luke with tears, and suffocating him with desperate, motherly embraces. While the young boy stood there silent.

Leia could still feel Anakin's arm around her, for some moments gripping at her so tightly she feared for another bruise. But nothing, no physical pain could ever compare to the twirling within the Force. Leia felt her father's strong feelings. The Sith's emotions burning her and almost driving her mad.

He quickly realized it and disguised his private thoughts, but Leia was sure his mind was aching with that same fearful uncertainty which shouldn't be possible.

How.

It wasn't just Leia, she could also read it in her father's eyes. The surprise hadn't just shook the Princess. Anakin did not sense the presence of his own son!

Even having him a few feet distance, they, the Sith and Apprentice could almost swear he wasn't there!

"Oh my children," Padmé was the only one smiling fully, "finally I have you both again! Come on, Leia, I want to hold you both at the same time."

The Princess didn't move, but Anakin gave her a slight push, and so the Queen had her twins within her loving grasp. The Princess flinched when Padmé gathered her hand along Luke's.

"Are you okay? Do you feel ill? Have you eaten yet…?"

"Padmé, stop," Anakin interrupted, rubbing his forehead. "You will give them a headache with so many questions. We'll have plenty of time for that," he ominously said. "For now… I think we all need to sit down."

"Speak for yourself. I could hold my kids forever!"

"I do want to sit down, actually," Luke calmly said.

Anakin's blue eyes flashed distrust, he stared at Luke for a long time. The strangely identical looks crossed, until Anakin gave two slow steps to approach his son. Leia's heart skipped several beats. Anakin embraced Luke Skywalker, and the young boy held his father very tightly. No more words passed for the moment, and the Emperor motioned everyone to follow him.

 _It will not be that easy, Son…_ he thought, keeping both eyes on his family.

* * *

The largest drawing room in the castle was reserved only for the royal family. No visitor, not even high-ranking imperials could enter it. Of course there were the Castle's servants. Padmé ordered her children's favorite meals and a teapot to calm everyone's minds—they rather needed it.

Anakin disappeared for some moments while the tea and the food were being served.

"Now," he asked to a droid servant. "In what conditions did my children arrive?"

"Sir, the Princess of the Skywalker Empire arrived here a couple days ago in a Corellian freighter—a Corellian pilot, a Wookiee and the protocol droid C-3PO accompanying her. She spent the first day in rehabilitation, visited only by doctors and Lady Jade."

He couldn't hear about Leia's possible injuries for the moment—if ever.

"Didn't Luke require medical attention, too, then?"

"I had not seen the young Prince till now."

"Was he with Mara Jade then?"

"I do not know, Your Majesty."

"And my daughter's… companions," Anakin gritted his teeth. "Where are they now?"

"The protocol droid and the Wookiee were in the dining room last time I checked."

"And the pilot?"

"In the Princess's bedroom, I believe, sir."

Anakin's stomach turned.

"What?!" he cried as if it were the droid's fault.

"In the Princess's bedroom, sir," the droid repeated.

Anakin covered his face with his hands. He rubbed his eyes and pulled at his own hair. Why hadn't they protected his daughter while he was away? But this will not go unnoticed by him.

"Triple Zero, I have a few commands you must ensure are well followed while I come back to my family."

"Of course, Your Majesty."

* * *

 _I want this to be over…_

 _I want this to be over…_

 _I want this to be over…_

Leia thought over and over again.

Really, she couldn't wish for anything more than to be alone in her bedroom, hiding from her own reality. She had longed for her mother endlessly for the past months, now she could hardly believe she was seating next to Padmé and Luke while drinking tea and fancy sandwiches. It seemed ridiculous. She felt nauseous all the sudden, then she saw her father had comeback.

"Where were you?" Padmé asked him.

"Just taking care of business; a few affairs. I've been gone a long time."

"Well, I think anything else can wait, I mean look, Ani: we are all together at last!"

"Yes," Anakin smiled. "Although why we were separated, I do not know," he said, staring accusingly at Luke. He returned his stare with much defiance.

"Not now," Padmé pleaded. "We can discuss everything later. Right now, I just want us to enjoy our time together as a family."

Luke gave a drink to his cup of tea. "Yeah," he said with a smile, "me, too."

Leia's headache was returning with odd intensity. She rubbed her forehead with her index finger. She tried to stand up, only to fall back into her chair immediately.

"Leia!" Anakin and Padmé cried at the same time. "Are you all right?"

"I am fine," she muttered angrily. She turned to see her parents and realized she couldn't distinguish them. Everything had become a huge blur.

 _I am blind!_ She suddenly thought, panic-stricken. What is happening to me?

"Leia, honey you look so ill!" Padmé cried, worriedly. "Have you eaten appropriately? Here, give a bite," she took a meat sandwich, Force knows which kind (Leia couldn't tell the flavor) and directed it at the Princess's mouth. The simple smell made her choke; the slight taste turned Leia's white face green and purple. She tried to turn her back on everyone. She could only crawl on the large cushioned couch and throw up an odd mix that all the Skywalkers tried to turn to not see. The Princess kept vomiting, Anakin grabbed her shoulders with one hand while pushed her hair away with another. "There, there, my Princess," he softly said. "Don't worry, it will be all right."

"I can't breathe… I cannot see! I am dying!" Leia cried, dramatically.

"Shhh," Anakin soothed her. "Don't say that. Come my child, you need to sleep. Padmé, call a doctor immediately, darling, please."

"I want to go with you!"

"Call a doctor first. Luke come and help me with your sister."

"What do you think is wrong with her?" Luke asked, slightly pale.

"I am not a doctor, am I?" Anakin said, bitterly.

Luke nodded and the two walked Leia out of the drawing room.

* * *

The Princess dozed off several times while in the arms of her father. She was not aware of moving across the castle. Pain, new but just as unbearable clung to her making her wish she was just dead already. She reacted only after hearing her father say, "Open the door, Luke."

She flinched, startled. She opened her eyes, and forcing them, the recognized the door to her bedroom. "No!" she screamed and stood before it. "No don't come in."

"Leia, we'll just help you lie down so you can rest." Anakin calmly said.

"No—I said no!" Leia fought, but Anakin easily opened the door. She was sweating and muttering gibberish, feeling like she would throw up again. Which she did.

"Well, call a cleaning person here, too," Anakin said.

Leia felt as they placed her on her bed. Anakin put the covers and blankets over her. She search with her hand around the bed for the man she had shared it with just before. But she was alone in the bed.

She breathed out in relief and sunk into her pillows.

"Are you better, my child?" Anakin asked her.

"No," she answered truthfully. "please leave me alone. I need to rest."

"All right," Anakin nodded. "But I will send a doctor here, so be ready, my dear. Come Luke, let's leave her at peace."

"I can stay and watch over her," Luke said.

Leia's blood turned hot with rage. "No," she whispered, barely concealing her hatred at her brother. "Go."

She didn't see his expression as he said, "Alright."

They both left her.

After hearing the door being closed, she jumped from the bed. "Han!" she whispered, smiling, and looked under the bed. He wasn't there. "Han!" she searched the closet, giggling thinking she'd find him in there with an arrogant grin after fooling the emperor. He wasn't there. "Han?" she looked in the fresher. He wasn't there.

"Where the hell did he hide?" she wondered, bewildered.

Still in the fresher, she regarded her reflection on the looking glass, and was partly thankful he didn't see her in such a state.

Minutes later, when the doctor arrived, he cleaned her and gave her medicine that finally made her feel much better, and less like she was about to die. He also explained to Leia what a hangover was. She made him promise he wouldn't say Leia had just experienced one of those, and a rather severe one.

Somewhat pain-free, now she could wonder, more coherently: Where the hell did Han go?

* * *

As good as the doctor's medicine made her feel, Leia cursed the fact that they also put her to sleep. She could tell when opening her eyes that she was now in another day.

She bathed and got ready with an unsteady heart. How could she had lost so much time?

She left her bedroom terribly afraid of being lonesome. For a few moments, she feared she had been abandoned by everyone. She thought she wouldn't find Anakin and Padmé again. She even felt anxious at the thought that Luke might had escaped again. She counted only on one person: Han Solo.

Surely there was a good reason of why he didn't try to get into her bedroom last night.

No, he must've tried, she thought amused. But with the Emperor in the castle it must've been impossible.

Where did they send him to sleep, though?

Oh she was dying with curiosity and she asked the first person she ran into: Mara Jade.

"Good morning, Princess," Mara greeted with a smile.

"Mara," Leia didn't think to greet her back. "Where are my friends?"

"I don't know about the droid," Mara said, "maybe sent back to Theed with your mother's family—"

"And the smugglers?"

"That's what they were?" Mara questioned, scathingly.

"Where are they?!" Leia pressed.

"They left last night, dear. Where to I certainly don't know."

"What," Leia gasped.

"They talked to your father and then they left."

"No… no! What did he do to them?"

"Leia, what could he possibly do?" Mara grinned as if amused.

Leia kept gasping for air.

"Is everything all right?" a dark voice spoke behind the two girls.

Mara Jade paled as if she had seen a ghost.

"Father," Leia said, on edge, "Mara told me… you spoke to my friends. The ones who brought me here."

"The pilots, Leia? Oh yeah I met them last night, and of course I thanked them for bringing you and your brother here safely."

"They said that?"

"Yes, the Corellian man, what's his name, also let me know of the debt you had to him. Don't worry, Leia, I paid him."

"What?" Leia cried in a paralysis of shock. "You paid him?"

"Yes, of course. He seemed very happy with his reward—I could tell he really loves money," Anakin smiled.

"And he just—left?"

"Yes, I told him I could provide him of a ship if he just waited to the morning but he was very—too keen, actually, on leaving."

"He left," Leia whispered to herself, breathless.

"Yes," Anakin smiled a large smile. He stared at Leia, waiting for her explosive nature to burst before his eyes; he waited for her screams, for her insults, for her claims and questions. All in vain. He received nothing of that.

"Very well," she calmly said and turned her back to go.

Even Mara Jade was shocked.

The princess walked perfectly fine till she reached the main staircase, at the bottom of it she found her twin brother, he was seated with R2-D2 and C-3PO joining him by each side. Just as she reached them, Leia heard, from behind, up above, the Emperor's dark voice:

"Don't go anywhere. I want to speak to you."


	30. Ward Of The Empire

Chapter XXX: Ward Of The Empire

" _Don't go anywhere. I want to speak to you."_

Luke and Leia stared at each other, for the first time eye to eye since they reunited in the castle; in synch they held their breaths, and turned to see their father.

 _Don't you dare say anything yet..._ Leia's eyes seemed to say.

Luke's complicit smile answered he wasn't thinking of doing it.

"Father," Luke calmly said, "anything you want of course—just remember," he cleared his throat, "Mother said nothing too serious for now."

"My Son," Anakin smiled, "I am so happy to have you back. I _do_ agree with your mother. Even though your disappearance shook this family and the entire galaxy to its very core," he quickly said then stopped for a moment, "I believe I can wait to know why you left."

"Is it because you already know the reason?" Luke said, unperturbed.

Leia repressed the impulse to gasp.

"I will have patience," Anakin said, keeping his harmless, fatherly smile. "But anyway… I wasn't talking to you, Son."

"Uh?"

"I mean, I want to talk right now but not to you."

Now Leia couldn't hold it in and she gasped.

"My Princess," Anakin softly said, "neither with you."

The twins again stared at each other.

"I really need a conversation with my two oldest friends… Artoo, Threepio, would you please come with me to my office for a moment?"

"Uh Your Majesty," Threepio said, frightfully, "of course!"

R2-D2 beeped something along the lines.

"Wait Threepio!" Leia cried.

"Um, Artoo," Luke said nervously, "first I need to say something to you in private—"

"My children," Anakin smiled, "you might think of them as your droids, but I have to remind you, they've been with me for far longer. And I don't possess them—they're my friends. I think more loyal than even family."

Threepio looked less frightened by Anakin. The two droids walked amicably with the Emperor while Luke and Leia saw them till they disappeared from their sight.

"Well, who knows how that might go," Luke grinned.

Leia snapped her head; she glared at him fiercely and also walked away.

Luke stood alone for a moment, he considered what he ought to do next. He didn't want to go to his bedroom, he didn't want to see or speak to anybody. He walked to the garden and decided now would be a really good time to meditate.

On his way there, he ran into his mother.

"I can hardly believe it," Padmé said, struggling to keep her voice as far as possible from a scold. "Finally we are all together under the same roof again… and you all chose to be apart."

"I just want a moment alone, mother, that's all."

"I would think you've had ample of that," she sadly said. "Please Luke. Come and join me in whatever room you want—I'll call Leia and Anakin, too…"

"Father is occupied interrogating Artoo and Threepio- and I am sure Leia is also needing a moment alone," Luke said, unable of facing her.

"And what about me?" Padmé whispered. "I can't be alone anymore…"

Luke felt a lump in his throat, he looked up and regarded her bereaved expression. He took her hand and kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry, Mother—but you're strong enough for it. I'm sure." He turned to leave her and continue his way.

"Am I?" Padmé wondered aloud. "By the way," she said as he walked away, "There is another person in the castle who wants to see you."

Luke stopped dead.

"Will you ignore her as well?"

He said nothing and kept walking.

Padmé sighed, and feeling immensely lonesome and abandoned, she went to one of the drawing rooms where she knew she'd find company.

"Your Grace," Mara smiled upon seeing her enter, "how good to see you again!"

"My dear Mara, come child you must be very lonely, too."

The two women hugged, Padmé petting her like she wished to pet her own children.

"I am all right," Mara quickly said. "I suppose you're having another family meeting. Don't worry, I will leave immediately—"

"Don't move, Mara. In fact, let's call for some tea. No one's coming."

"Oh."

"I am sure you are as disappointed as I am. Have you spoken to him—to them?"

"Uh, yes I spoke to His Majesty, the Emperor, and to Princess Leia."

"Stop with the titles, you know you are a part of this family. Have you spoken to Luke?"

Mara was silent for a moment. "No."

"I suppose you were the last person he spoke to before he went away, though."

"I wouldn't know for sure."

"Do you have any idea of why he left?"

Mara stared down at her own lap. "Not really."

Queen Amidala stood up; she walked to the window and stared at the outside.

"Why don't you go talk to him?"

Mara Jade looked down still. "If he wanted to talk to me he would've done it by now. Besides, I don't want to leave you alone for now."

Padmé laughed sadly. "I am used to it by now, Mara. Much as I am sure you are. Come on, leave your pride. He's in the garden right now."

Mara seemed to consider this for a while. Finally, she rose to go. "Queen Amidala," she said with supreme respect and affection, "thank you for all you've done for me. I don't think a person has been as good to me as you have been. Thank you."

"Go, Mara," Padmé smiled.

The Queen closed the curtains and sat down, truthfully she knew that was right. But that really wasn't saying much, Mara Jade hadn't exactly many people in her life that were good. Even amidst—maybe specially amidst the Skywalkers.

At the Birth of the Empire the Jedi religion was immediately outlawed. Darth Vader begin a ruthless movement to erase all the Jedi. Force sensitive children were the next target. They were not part of the genocide, but many were taken away into special orphanages to prevent them from studying the Force. Parents were warned to never let a Jedi take their children, for then they would end up dead.

Mara Jade was a special case. She had been found when Palpatine was still alive, when the plan was to keep her to be trained in the arts of the dark side. After he was killed, Mara Jade fell into Anakin Skywalker's hands. He would've sent her away without a single care, but Padmé stopped him. She was a new mother, and so very sensible to the presence of a baby.

At first she considered adopting Mara, but she couldn't convince Anakin. Since Mara Jade was, even as a small innocent baby, a reminder of his old Master, the one who almost enslaved him, almost wrecked his life, Anakin instantly and naturally hated her.

Mara Jade couldn't be kept in Naboo with Padmé, Luke and Leia, so she was sent to Coruscant. She grew up in the castle with all the luxuries and safety Luke and Leia did. Except she could not be trained. She could not have a small bit of information regarding the Dark Side, or the Light, for that matter. By that time, Anakin had decided the Force would be exclusive for the Skywalkers.

It had been difficult for Mara to know her place in the universe, on the one hand, she was a highly educated lady, rich and privileged, on the other… the Emperor made sure to make her aware she was NOT a Skywalker. She was not in any way like Leia, the true Princess. Mara was obeyed by servants and imperials. Yet reduced to a ward, a sort of burden when Anakin was around. He made her believe she survived on his charity alone.

It was certainly a different story regarding the other Skywalkers. Padmé showed nothing but love and kindness towards her, and she often requested her presence in Naboo—when Anakin wasn't home. Luke and Leia spent time with her since infancy every time they went to the Capital City. They grew up together, and since she could remember Mara was great friends with the Princess, as they both had strong personalities. With Luke she used to fight a lot as children, though their quarrels were always resolved until Mara realized her friendship with the Prince was far stronger than the one she built with Leia.

Till it was more than that.

Mara had much hesitation about what she was about to do, yet she was determinate on doing it any way. She found her way to the Castle's Garden; from afar she could already see him like she so many times before did.

He was seated on the grass, his eyes closed, clearly deep in meditation. She told herself that she didn't want to disturb him and she should just leave him alone—but she couldn't fool herself, that was definitely not true.

* * *

 **AN** : Remember I said Mara Jade's role would be further explained? Well there you go. I hope it didn't feel like it stopped the story purposelessly.

By the way, some people have pointed out this story shouldn't be called _Queen Amidala_ since for most of it she hasn't really been the protagonist, but I can promise you in the end it will all draw back to Padmé becoming Queen of the Galactic Empire.

Thanks for reading!


	31. The Prince And The Ward

Chapter XXXI: The Prince and the Ward

" _There is no emotion,"_ Luke heard the sound of his own voice within his head, _"there is peace."_

He felt her presence in the Force, shaking him to the point he felt he could tremble.

" _There is no ignorance, there is knowledge."_

Even if he weren't so strong in the Force he'd known, anyone would know she was approaching. The sound of her steady steps on the stone sidewalk of the garden were noticeable, and her captivating, sweet scent had covered the environment.

" _There is no passion,"_ his eyes were closed yet he found no struggle at all imagining her beautiful face; her small, graceful, enticingly feminine figure, always clad in expensive dresses… _"There is serenity..."_ His heart was beating on his ears now, fast with excitement. Happy while afraid with anticipation.

" _There is no chaos—"_

"Hello, stranger," Mara Jade said.

"— _There is harmony."_ He waited a few moments, immobile and apparently calm. An explosion beneath his chest where his heart should be. The sound of her voice like music, melodic and sweet to his ears.

"I don't mean to interrupt," Mara said, her voice slightly shy. "I'll leave you to meditate in peace… I'm just glad you're back," she sounded so sincere while afraid of pronouncing those words.

" _There is no death!"_ Luke felt hatred for himself, for his ability to affect Mara Jade negatively, realizing the sadness he brought her; and for his own weakness. Reciting the Jedi's teachings proved useful in many situations… not back home. _"There is the Force."_

"Wait, Mara," he said before he even knew he had thought the words, "Don't go."

He finally opened his eyes, and seeing her again, he thought with the biggest of fears that Masters Yoda and Kenobi were right. He wasn't ready…

She smiled widely at him and he had no choice but to do the same, his own young face lighted, and he ran to her. He picked her up in his arms but when she tried to kiss him, he collected himself, and avoided it. Keeping her in his arms, he felt her many emotions, strong and wild which she in vain tried to conceal.

"You're not happy to see me," Mara said, her voice holding great anger, "let go of me!"

He held her tighter. If he had been weak now, why not take advantage of it? He had missed her every day. She had occupied his thoughts when he'd been studying the Jedi code. How impossible it had seemed to think he could renounce every attachment in his life. While in Dagobah there were moments in which he felt he might succeed… but the way he held his childhood friend with adoration unlike any worthy Jedi proved he had still a long way to go.

"I need to talk to you," he said, unable of erasing the smile from his lips.

"You don't need to hold me like _that_ to talk," she said, rather crossly.

He laughed. "You're right." For a second he kept her even closer; he smelled her fiery red hair and brushed his forehead against her own. Then, with great effort, he put her down, and gave a few steps back.

A few moments passed in which both gathered their breaths, then Mara was again the one brave enough to break the silence.

"What do you want to talk about?" she said, struggling to sound careless.

"Do you want to walk as we talk?"

"Whatever."

He almost offered her his arm, instead, he cleared his throat and they went towards the deepest regions of the Skywalker Castle's wide garden.

"I assume you don't want to be heard," Mara Jade slyly said.

"Perhaps," Luke nodded. "This is going to be just between you and me."

Mara was almost left behind. She had stopped walking and again was gathering her breath. Licking her lips which were suddenly very dry.

"All right," she nodded and her voice almost shook. "I'm listening."

Luke gave a faint smile, "Mara," he said, his voice in earnest, "I know you must be very angry with me… the way I left—"

"Without even saying goodbye. Having me believe for months you might be dead," she interrupted, her exuberant emerald eyes full of fire. Her emotion so strong at the moment. _We'll really have to work on that,_ Luke thought; but surely it would work. _She has a good heart. Deep down._

"I will explain everything, Mara—"

"No!" again she interrupted. "Don't share your secrets with me, Luke. Please." Her fiery eyes softened, and they pleaded, shining with what Luke could recognize was fear.

"I know you wouldn't betray me," Luke gently said.

"Never. But I don't want to have anything to betray you with. Don't tell me things I can't tell the Emperor!"

"If he confronted you… would you speak? Would you tell my secrets to him, Mara?" Luke questioned, genuinely curious, his pacing being suddenly slower.

Mara looked down. "I wouldn't have a choice. That you know."

Luke sighed. "You're very loyal, Mara Jade."

"You say that as if it were a bad thing."

"It can be—when trust is misplaced."

"That is the Emperor, your father you're talking about Luke."

"Oh come on! No one can hear us here! Speak freely. Say what you feel. I know how much you—you hate him."

Mara blinked, startled. She looked around, making sure no one could hear them.

"He is the Emperor. We have no choice but to obey and respect him," Mara Jade said amidst clenched teeth, anger and resentment hanging on every word.

"Or do we?" Luke said, his face very curious.

Mara shook her head, obviously confused.

"All right, Mara. I'll skip the details for now about my going away if you don't want to hear them… But you have to hear about my plans for the future."

"Why?"

"Because you're a part of them."

She did a double take. "I'm part of your future?" she said, astonished, unable of concealing her great happiness.

"No one but you for now," he said, taking her hand again and coming to a halt.

He guided her to a beautiful crystal and grey bench, helping her sit down; kneeling before her, keeping both of her small hands between his own. He could feel her emotion stronger than ever, he feared his own heart would burst along hers.

"Oh Luke," Mara said, her voice almost shaking with tears, her loving face lighted with hope.

"Mara, I need you. I can't count with anyone else for the moment."

A tear escaped her eye. She wanted to wipe it away but he still had her hands captured. She reached over, bringing her face closer to his, itching to cover him with wild kisses.

"Mara, my only hope, would you leave this castle, the security you have here, and come with me?"

"Yes!" she cried.

"Would you really leave everything, every luxury behind, and join me?"

"Forever! I swear!"

"Oh Mara! You would join my new Jedi Order!"

"I do! I love yo—WHAT?" she cried, bewildered, all light and happiness leaving her face.

"I'm going to start a new Jedi Order," Luke proudly said. "I need to have young apprentices. When the war is over, I will search the galaxy for Force-sensitive kids. Right now you can be my only apprentice."

Mara shook her head, swallowing every one of his words as if they were poison.

"I wanted Leia to help me," Luke went on. "But for now that's impossible. You will be a fine Jedi I'm sure! And don't worry, we will not be alone."

"Oh good," she said with the bitterest sarcasm.

"Master Yoda and Master Kenobi will guide us."

"I don't even know what to say."

"Say yes, Mara," he said, squeezing her white palms.

She shed another tear. "I want to—but to a very different question," she sighed, heartbroken, "this is not what I expected."

"I know," he sighed. "But it's all I can offer you. You're free to say no."

"I will go with you, Luke," Mara assured him. "Anywhere you want. I want to be with you… but I cannot be a Jedi. You know I've been denied using the Force all my life."

"I will teach you."

"That's not what I want from you," she reached closer, and softly kissed his cheek.

"Don't, Mara," Luke warned her. " _If_ you're coming with me… you have to be a Jedi. And you know a Jedi—"

"Knows no love?" Mara said, her voice filled with pain. "No passion. No attachment."

"And no hatred."

"But I feel all those things Luke! You do, too."

"No… I—I am working on it, okay."

"I love you. You know that, if you don't love me anymore I prefer to never see you again—but I know you must love me! You must at least feel something very small towards me."

"It has to transform to esteem. We can care for each other and be cordial—"

"That'd never be enough. That'd never happen."

Luke let go of her and stood up. He paced in circles around her, looking frustrated.

"I was counting on you," he sighed.

"You know how to get me," she insinuated.

He had his back to her, but at those words turned around and saw her, beautiful and broken, a few tears swimming and shining down her gorgeous face.

He ran to her, all of Yoda's teaching thrown away, his own human instincts taking over. He first cleaned her tears with a soft, caressing finger; then he placed his hands on her petite waistline, bringing her very close, at last, he kissed her lips.

Oh why did this have to be forbidden? Why when nothing ever felt better? He felt no guilt as he kissed and caressed her, as he felt her own hands going around his neck in an adoring gesture. How could he train her after that? She'll never believe he has no wild feelings of love for her.

But he couldn't care for the moment. The world was apart from them. In an imaginary perfect bubble of irreality…

"Ahem," a man's voice sounded behind them, clearing his throat in an awkward fashion. "Pardon me, Your Majesty…"

Luke kept Mara Jade in his arms but turned to see the servant. "What do you want?" he said in a haughty voice, hating the interruption.

"Forgive me, Queen Amidala's been anxiously asking about you, and the Emperor sent me to search—"

"Yeah, yeah, okay. Go then, I'll go into the castle in a minute."

"Very well, Your Majesty."

Luke watched the man go away with resentment, then the words hit him like a stone wall. _"Your Majesty."_ The title he hated so much. The one he had renounced. Ugh, and now he was back to what his father had tried to make of him. Privileged and arrogant. Powerful and obeyed. No… he could not go back. Not after everything he had done and been through. Images of the Civil War flashed in his mind. Countless hours of training. Missions with the Rebel Alliance. The witnessing of injustices across the galaxy… The galaxy needed the Jedi, and only he could bring them back. He couldn't be so selfish. He had to make sacrifices. _Oh Mara…_

He distanced himself from her, watching her face, previously joyous, widely confused.

"I'm sorry," he couldn't look at her in the eyes, knowing they might change his mind again. "I've given you the only offer I have. Come to me if you accept it, if you don't… Mara, we shouldn't be together."

With that, without waiting for a response, he fled from the scene.


	32. Everything Has Changed

Chapter XXXII: Everything Has Changed

Anakin Skywalker was astonished, in the worst of ways, to find no better luck with his trusty droids than with his children.

As a child, he had built Threepio with his own hands, innocently searching for a friend amidst his lonely life as a slave. Artoo had been the greatest gift he'd ever gotten. Not only did it come from the person he loved the most, but he became at times of war one of the better and most useful companions.

Now, he could not get them to reveal what they'd seen as they guarded his children.

Threepio said only what Anakin already knew. That the princess had been going from planet to planet looking for the young prince, more often than not ending up in life or death scenarios.

Artoo, on the other hand was more frustrating. He wouldn't say anything at all about his time away with Luke.

The Emperor took a deep breath, calming his rage… In a low voice he tried again—

"Where did you go with my son, Artoo?"

He bleeped, Anakin needed no translation, "Ask your son."

Anakin growled. "Threepio, where did you and Leia find Luke?"

"Oh, an awful planet I do not even want to recall!" moaned the droid.

Anakin was on the verge of looking deranged yet sane. "Do recall it," he said in a menacing voice. "Please…"

"Da—" R2-D2 pushed C3-PO.

"Artoo!" Anakin screamed. "Stop acting like a traitor! Better yet: leave us, _fool_." The last word he only whispered to himself.

"Yes, do," Threepio said; but upon inspecting the Emperor's face, he realized he did not want to be alone with him.

"Don't betray the princess," R2 beeped as he moved to leave.

Anakin grunted. "What about betraying the Emperor?!"

"What about it?" said a soft voice bursting in.

Anakin turned to see her. "Padmé, not now."

"Oh don't worry about us…" Threepio said. "Artoo is right for once—we'll leave you alone."

"Threepio, don't you move another inch!" Anakin cried. "Not until permitted."

"You are permitted," Padmé said. The droids needn't be told twice.

Alone, husband and wife stared at each other for some moments.

"Do you realize what you've done?" Anakin said in a rage. "I was about to find out where our son had been hiding."

"No you weren't," Padmé disagreed, calmly. "At this point, what does it matter?"

"It matters a great deal! If we know where he left we could know _**why**_ he left!"

"I don't care," Padmé eyes flashed anger. "You are going to drive him away again if you keep harassing him!"

"So we should just ignore all the damage he caused our family by doing what he did? He consciously hurt every single one of us! Like the brat he is he thought only on himself—"

"Anakin! Do not speak like that! You sound almost as if you hated him…"

"I do not hate my son. I hate what he's done. Hate what he put us through. I _am_ , though, _vastly_ angry at him."

"I can see that, like everybody. But you're just going to have to forget it—or pretend until you actually do."

"When have you known me to forget?"

Padmé's eyes watered; she kept the tears from falling, though. "Never." She agreed through a sad grin.

She left him without another word.

Anakin sank in his chair, feeling lost. He wished to go after her; the last thing he could need was to quarrel with his wife. Yet the fatigue he'd been ignoring for months came to overtake him, and when Padmé found her chamber, she stayed there all alone.

* * *

A new day dawned in the Skywalker Castle in Coruscant.

This had once been one of her favorite places, with a routine very much to the Princess's taste.

Coruscant meant freedom, because her mother wasn't there, and her father was too busy there. It meant fun, being the Capital of the galaxy there wasn't a thing you couldn't find here. It meant privilege, somehow more than in Naboo, as here people knew obedience before sense—something Padmé wouldn't allow.

It meant trust, having in Mara the most reliable listener and secret-keeper…

What was left? The Princess wondered.

The first thing she heard waking up was a message from the Queen, requesting her presence in the breakfast room.

Leia trod slowly every step as though somebody was watching her. For most of the day she was spared of the difficult questions she knew her father would demand from her; she would be spared from Padmé's comments that could in a matter of seconds make her cry.

The rehabilitation wasn't over, and Leia spent most of her time in the bacta tank, in the medical room, in her own room; sedated, examined, tested, watched over…

 _So tiresome._

The process of healing was drawn out with the weight of something she couldn't understand over her shoulders.

She didn't know what it was, this constant pain that prevented her from ever smiling or laughing. It prevented her from seeing the simple joys she had now at her disposal, even the things she had dreamed and longed for so desperately for months…

The night came when her medical droid and her human doctor agreed she could go have dinner with the rest of her family, whom she had been avoiding on the excuse of not being well.

She entered the large dining room, having previously prepared for the occasion with no less than five handmaidens brought from Naboo: her hair hung loose, flowing brown and luscious; a beautiful braid in the middle. Her dress, pearly white silk, covered her arms and her neck, it reached just below her knees, giving her a pretty, regal, royal look.

"Good evening," she greeted, somewhat awkwardly.

At the head of the table sat Anakin, across from him Padmé. By Padmé's right sat Mara Jade, looking miserable. Leia debated where to sit for some moments; before she could make up her mind, Luke walked in. He looked same as Leia always knew him. His permanent place was next to Mara, but tonight he chose to sit next to Anakin. Leia in the end sat next to Mara Jade.

The servants finished setting the table, and for a while, there was no other sound than that: clicking of glass, silver, and iron. No one particularly looked at anyone.

"Which wine would you prefer tonight, Your Grace?" a servant asked Anakin. "If you are to drink tonight—"

"You bet I am drinking. Corellian," Anakin said. "Begin bringing the courses as they're done. Hurry."

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Bring me a glass, too," the Princess suddenly said. "You didn't lay a goblet for me."

The servant turned to her, "You never drink, Your Highness. I'll bring it, of course. Do you have a preference, Princess?"

"I'll take a Corellian, like my father." She didn't look at Anakin.

Silence reigned the dining room again. The drinks came. Anakin and Leia poured themselves the Corellian wine. Padmé had a cup of Moenia herbal tea. Luke drank warm milk. Mara only water.

The dishes were being brought, one by one, like the Emperor ordered. Anakin was eating, when a servant came to announce a visitor. Anakin growled, saying he couldn't see anyone right now. The servant said it was Grand Moff Tarkin. Anakin considered it for a little bit, then he said, "Invite him in."

"I thought we couldn't see anyone right now?" Luke quipped. Anakin ignored him.

"Be respectful, all of you," Anakin said, tiredly.

"Yes, Lord Vader," Padmé said in a mocking tone, which caused Anakin to frown.

"Good evening!" Tarkin greeted cheerfully. "Your Majesties," he bowed. "Lady Jade. I can come back at a more appropriate time—"

"You're here already," Vader said. "Sit and eat. We'll talk in my office after dinner."

"As you wish. I particularly like what the Princess is eating," he had sat next to Leia. "Bring me some of that, please." The Emperor waved his hand and snapped his fingers. "And what she's drinking… drinking!" he exclaimed. Leia repressed the urge to cringe. "What, you drink now, Your Highness? I suppose you're old enough. Yes… Your twentieth year day has come and passed now. Such a shame there was no feast in your honor—of both of you, of course." He now looked at Luke. "Nice to have you back, young Prince."

Luke's face was blank and he didn't respond.

"And what is it that you're drinking, Princess?" Tarkin turned to Leia again. Before she could answer, he took her goblet, which was now empty, and smelled the top. "Corellian… Red, I believe. Not a bad choice, Your Highness, though not very according to a Princess."

"It was my father's choice. I simply mirrored it." Leia said.

"Really? Well, I'll trust his judgment, then. A glass of Corellian red wine for me!"

"There isn't any left," a servant quickly said.

"What?" Anakin was surprised. "How could that be possible? The castle has been deserted for months with only Jade here!" he stared at Mara Jade accusingly. "Are you drinking water now to cover you love drinking our alcohol or you're still nursing a hangover?"

Mara looked shaken, yet her voice was together when she said, "I never take anything from you sir. Nothing that isn't giving to me."

"Then what happened?" Anakin demanded.

The servant approached the Emperor, he was very old. When he appeared to have collected his memories, he said, simply: "It might have gone away when Princess Leia and the Corellian locked themselves in the cellar."

Every head looked up from their plates and to the Princess. She held her head high, feeling her cheeks growing crimson at everyone's steady gazes. Yet she felt no other pair of eyes burned her as much as her Father's. The air around them turned cold, though to Leia it seemed boiling hot, smothering.

"Corellian?" It was Tarkin who first found words. He sounded amused. "What Corellian? Are there any still alive?" he laughed.

"He, the servant, must mean the pilot that brought Princess Leia back to the Capital," Mara Jade said, trying to free the Princess from such distress.

"He was a Corellian? Why am I not surprised?"

"Governor Tarkin, you've seen that man?" Padmé asked.

"Yes, I happened to have been here in the castle when Princess Leia arrived. I didn't inform you immediately, Your Grace," he quickly said, feeling the Emperor's eyes already shading yellow. "Because Lady Jade forbidden me from doing it."

"Did she?" the Emperor asked, slowly. And glaring at Mara, he looked fully like a Sith, further from any light, his eyes golden and mad.

"I don't believe she'd hide anything from you, Father," Luke finally broke in, "You must be mistaken, Governor." There was an edge to his voice, a veiled threat.

"I asked her to," Princess Leia finally spoke, and she didn't sound like they expected, like even she expected. She wasn't abashed, or startled. She sounded like her usual strong self.

"Is that so, Leia? Well, she didn't honor your request for very long as she was the one who informed me you were here." He smiled wickedly.

Leia snapped her head to see Mara so quickly she hurt her neck. "You promised me…" her voice almost cracked; unbidden tears at the corner of her eyes.

Mara's eyes and face redden.

There was one more moment of now unbearably awkward silence.

"Well, at least the mystery of who drank the wine is cleared," Tarkin said, nonchalantly. "The Corellian pilot. I remember him well now."

"What was he like?" Padmé asked. "I hate I couldn't repay and thank him for the great kindness he did to us."

"Don't worry—I thanked him for everyone in the family." The Emperor said.

"He was young," Tarkin said. "Quite good looking actually. Dark. Tall and robust. Hazel eyes."

"Green," Leia suddenly cried, so suddenly it was odd.

"What?" Tarkin questioned.

"I said… his eyes were not hazel, they were green." Leia said, sounding as if she had been offended, and the topic were obviously serious and of great importance. "Maybe at first sight, from afar they seem hazel. If there's not much light you can even mistake them to be brown. And depending on his clothes he might trick you into thinking them blue. But up close, they sparkled green. Not like Mara's. Not like emeralds. Not like the grassed fields…" her voice dropped to a soft whisper. "Dark green; but it was a warm color, comforting. Laughing and daring…"

She looked up from her lap and to the crowd around her, almost all of them with their mouths wide open. "Anyway," she cleared her throat. "Not hazel."

Her mother's eyes particularly pained her. She couldn't read what she'd meant.

"Excuse me," Leia said.

She didn't wait for anyone to stop her, she just left the dining room.

When she reached the solitude of her bedroom she felt her beating heart snapping violently beneath her chest. When she stood in front of the looking glass she saw there were tears streaming down her face.

 _No one can see me._ She thought. _No one will know._

Why hold everything in? Just to have herself explode in front of anyone?

She needed release.

She threw herself in the bed and wept more intensely than ever before in her life. She even screamed and sobbed; she kicked and grunted. When she was so tired she couldn't even move, she let the heartbreak in her soul, in her bones, in her very core. "Han…" she whispered before falling asleep. She could almost feel he was still with her.

* * *

"Padmé, do leave me and Tarkin alone for a moment, please. We have a lot of work to do."

"I care nothing for the work you have to do! We need to talk about Leia. And Luke. And about me and you—"

"I can leave you two alone in the office, of course." Tarkin said. "Although we should note I already waited for you to finish dining…"

"Great, Tarkin. You waited through dinner, you can wait a little more," she said, not caring for his sarcasm.

"I should let you know Grand Admiral Thrawn might arrive, too…"

"Tell him he can meet you and the Emperor, and maybe me, at the Imperial Senate tomorrow." She curtly said.

"Padmé—" Anakin was about to protest but she didn't allow the interruption.

"I want no political affairs in my home anymore. No imperial officer— _I don't care the rank_ —"she gritted her teeth, "can come uninvited. Make that information known, Tarkin, please. Now, leave me alone with my husband."

"Yes, Your Grace." Tarkin bowed, and with an expression of displeasure left Vader's office.

Anakin and Padmé looked at each other for some moments. Actually, they pretty much glared at the other. Not one more fiercely than the other.

"What do you mean by this?" Anakin asked. "Do you wish to make a fool of me? Take away authority? A smarter ruler would have shut you up for the insolence you displayed! Contradicting the Emperor in front of a subordinate—"

"Well, why didn't you?" she screamed.

"There's no shutting you up!" He shouted back. "I knew that before we married. You have the mind of a politician still. You can argue every point, no matter how wrong you are, in a way so convoluted, intricate, and manipulative you can make me agree with what you say!"

"I can use reason and brains instead of intimidation, you say," Padmé didn't lose a beat.

"See? There it is! Get that political look off your face, Padmé. Force, you know I hate it. Don't speak calmly to me about things I know you want to scream. You can convince me of anything when there's a truthful expression on your face. When you're filled with passion—be it anger or love. But when you try to play me like you played the crowd in the Old Republic, you only make me—want to shut you up."

"Again, I say," Padmé looked hurt. "Why don't you? You say you can't… yet you've done it for years…"

Silence.

"You know you won't anymore," she breathed.

"On the contrary, you will put me in the necessity of doing it."

"You won't."

"It will hurt me but I will."

"You can't!" Padmé gasped.

"I will do anything to protect my family—even from you," his fist went around her throat, though they were steps apart. Padmé in her head tried to remember the last time Vader had used the Force against her.

"Anakin! Ah… An—"

"Stop!" a loud female cry rang within the office. Luke's voice thundered inside Anakin's head so that he got distracted and let Padmé go.

She fell to the floor, gasping still, fighting tears.

Leia grabbed her mother and laid her head on her lap. With one hand she checked on Padmé, with the other she covered her mouth, which she couldn't close in all astonishment.

"If you ever dare hurt her again…" Luke said, anger he couldn't hold in his face contorting his features.

"What will you do?" Anakin asked.

Luke turned to see Leia, then his mother, and the Emperor again. He held his tongue.

He helped Leia pull up their mother from the ground.

"The twins and I will leave to Naboo tomorrow," she said, even as she cleaned her tears.

"No one will leave for now," Anakin said in a decisive voice.

"Father—" Leia tried to say something but she had no words.

"You can be a tyrant elsewhere," Luke said. "But not with us. Not anymore, at least. Here you aren't the only one who has the Force!"

He called, from Vader's desk, a lightsaber. He did not keep it in his hands, he gave it to his sister.

"This is yours, Leia," Luke said. "I am sure you've missed it."

"My lightsaber…" she said with a voice full of emotion, igniting the weapon, dazzled by the red blade. "I thought I'd never see it again. How come is here?"

"I found it, Princess," Anakin said, his voice now tender, remembering the pain he felt when he found the weapon instead of the princess.

"Yavin…" Leia muttered. "The rebel base…"

"Yes!" the Emperor cried. "The rebels. We should be working on killing them, instead of fighting each other. Leia, my dear. Luke. We will immediately start back the Sith training."

"Let my mother go to Naboo, then," Leia pleaded.

"She can't be alone—I will not let her out of my sight!"

"But you will let her into your fist—" Luke sharply said.

"Enough!" Padmé cried. "Luke, Leia, go to your rooms now. Anakin, don't you dare following into mine."


	33. Demons

Chapter XXXIII: Demons

She had been raised in darkness. No, she was told she had been.

She had known darkness. No, the darkness was just beginning.

It was getting closer. It was catching up to her.

It burned. Like black flames.

No. It burned someone else.

The black flames danced around her. From it dark clouds formed so big they covered everything her eyes could see… and then, they were so powerful she could not see at all.

It was a scary pitch-back.

It was silent and remote.

She wished there was someone with her.

She wanted to call out to someone… but she didn't think anyone would come.

She started running, flurried till exhausted.

She dropped to her knees, trying to gather her breath. She closed her eyes shut and then… a light came to her. It seemed a long way. No matter, she ran to it, afraid that the darkness would consume her before she reached it.

She lost her way, and the previous light she had seen was nowhere to be found. Though desperate to find it, she found something else… it was bright, but not like the light. It was yellow. It was red. The flames again.

And then… was she not alone anymore?

She could hear what could be nothing but… blood-curling screams. Screams of pain. Screams of agony.

It was unbearable. She thought she'd go mad.

She started screaming just as savagely; knowing that no one would come to her. Just like the screamer knew no one would come to him.

She couldn't stand it. She couldn't stop screaming.

Shout.

Shout.

Shout.

Incoherent.

Scary.

"Leia!" she heard but it sounded far away, too far to even be of help.

"Leia!"

Her screams were enough to make a sane person go mad. She felt that way about the other screams she could hear.

"Leia! Wake up!"

The screams made her wish she were deaf.

"Leia!" her father shook her, finally getting her to wake up.

The Princess twisted in her bed, she screamed once more, this time hurting her vocal chords in a way that made her think she'd never be able to speak again. She sobbed in her own hands. She blinked a dozen times before she could distinguish the scene around her.

She was in her father's arms, he was crying with her. Padmé and Luke sat at either side of the bed, they looked at her gravely though more put together than she'd expected.

"Are you all right?" Padmé asked. "My dear, I will stay with you if you want."

Leia shook her head. "N-no. Why are you here?"

"You were screaming, Leia. We all thought you were being attacked." Luke said.

"It was a nightmare, Leia," Anakin said. "There's no shame in it."

She felt very much ashamed.

"We're all hurting you, my princess," Padmé said, sorrowfully. "I'm so sorry you saw me and your father fight—"

"What?" Leia said, as if she had just woken up.

"Leia…"

"Get out of my room." She suddenly said. "Everyone! Out!"

She freed herself from Anakin's arms. She stood and aggressively pushed everyone out.

When the three other Skywalkers were at the other side of the door, Padmé broke down and cried. "Keep pushing me out," she said, to no one in particular. "I don't have the Force, but I am also bound to all of you… Our family is being destroyed, and I don't know how to save it!" she cried in despair.

"We're certainly not helping," Luke said after she was gone.

"I am trying," Anakin sighed.

"Must be horrible," Luke said.

"What, son?"

"I've experienced very little of Force visions… but they do feel remarkably real."

"What are you talking about, son?"

"You have nightmares, too." Luke stated.

Anakin gulped.

"I thought you said there was no shame in it?" Luke questioned.

"What would you know about my nightmares?" Anakin dodged.

"Not a lot, yet more than I wish to know, Father."

"What are _her_ nightmares about?" Anakin asked in a most pained voice.

"I don't know," Luke breathed. "And I am truly afraid of asking."

"Afraid of her response?"

"Afraid she might be truthful. I know she's suffered. And though you don't know of what, you know it, too. I don't think either of us could take her pain… So we should probably do nothing to increase it," he said, raising an eyebrow.

Anakin frowned at him.

"I'd never hurt her."

"You promised my mother you'd never hurt her. Your word lost its worth long time ago, Father."

"Do you know your words border on insolence now, son?"

"Do they?" he grinned. "That's a danger I do not wish to experience right now, at this hour. Good night, Father. I'm going back to sleep. Ah, stop that look. I have no plans of leaving without saying anything— for now, that is. Go to sleep in tranquility… if you can."

 _Like I would._

Standing outside his daughter's door, he had no idea of where to go in his castle.

Padmé had been serious when she said he could not go into her chambers, he knew that look too well. He almost wished to not give a damn and go to her either way, but even he had had enough on this awful night.

He went back to his office. He laid down on the couch, but he was afraid, truly now, of going to sleep now.

He could not deal with his nightmares—especially as he could not stop thinking about what Leia's could be.

He fought his eyes to keep them open **,** yet being sleep depraved proved to be too much, at last, and he dozed off.

* * *

Morning dawned with all its depressing qualities.

It was hard getting out of bed, Leia wandered around and through the sheets with the intention of rising, yet again and again failing, deciding there was no point.

She felt caged in her spacious bedroom. How different life had been before… It made no sense in her head. She had begged the Force for a piece of her home; now that she obtained it, alongside her entire family, why did she feel so empty? Why was everything so wrong?

Sighing, crestfallen and weak, she started her day. She had no idea of what could be done. Perhaps a little fresh air would do her good…

She sat in the wide garden, in solitude, trying to find some peace, some guidance, which seemed impossible. _Why did he go?_ Why did Han leave her like that? Why couldn't she believe her father about it?

 _He wouldn't lie. He's my own father!_

But Han just would not abandon her without a word.

 _He did it, though._

Oh don't cry. Don't be affected by it. Reach out to the living Force, Leia…

She would not break down over a man, a man who cared nothing for her.

She envisioned the darkness, immensity that is space. She saw herself flying through it. Without help yet never helpless. Powerful. The Sith that she is; or that she will be…

Breathed deeply… in and out… In. Out. Breathe.

Han.

She was not in solitude.

She could still feel him—

"Leia?" she heard her father's voice and immediately opened her eyes. "Why are you startled? I didn't mean to. Were you meditating?"

"I… yes."

"May we join you?"

Luke was with him.

Leia eyed him angrily. She still couldn't look at him for more than a couple seconds.

She nodded.

"I rather think the three of us could really use some meditation…" Anakin said. He always appeared taller and older when he instructed them, Leia remembered. "Sit down, children."

Luke sat facing Leia.

"What were you envisioning Leia? A sea?"

"Space."

"Ah. Not bad. Tell us the image you saw."

She vacillated. "I saw… the deep, absolute black darkness. Myself, completely alone."

"Good. Picture yourself like that Luke."

"That doesn't sound relaxing," Luke said. "It sounds rather claustrophobic."

"Hush. Try it."

"All right. Alone… in space…"

"In power," Leia whispered. "All the power is mine. No one can take it."

"If the power is all mine—" Anakin said.

"Victory is mine." Leia finished. "They can't win against me… I won't let them… Stop!" she screamed.

Luke and Anakin jumped. "What?" they cried in unison.

Leia shook her head and rubbed her forehead.

"What did you see now, Leia?" Anakin asked.

"Perhaps we can continue some other time…" Luke said, carefully, noticing tears cornering on Leia's always pained eyes.

"No," she quickly said. She took another deep breath. "Father, where did you find this?" she touched the lightsaber that hung down her waist. She had not ignited it since she recovered it.

Anakin looked away. "In the rebel base in Yavin."

"Yavin…" Leia wandered off. "I say we should start the training again."

Now Luke shook his head.

"Are you sure, Leia?" Anakin questioned.

"Quite." She rose and ignited her weapon. The red blade felt now almost odd on her hands. She remembered the last lightsaber she had used. The Jedi weapon.

Luke sighed. "I don't have my lightsaber with me," he said.

"You can use mine," Anakin handed him the lightsaber.

Luke seemed cornered. Leia smiled wickedly.

The twins faced each other, two hellish red blades shinning loud.

Luke gave two steps back, three forward. Leia didn't move.

Anakin watched them closely.

Leia was the first to attack, Luke deflected her easily.

They went back and forth like they usually did.

"It's almost comical," Leia breathed, suddenly. "It's ridiculous!"

"What, child?"

"For you to make us think this is how it's going to be… this training, Father. Forgive me, it feels artificial."

"I don't get what you mean—watch your back!"

Leia spun and jumped high. "Do you think I feel in danger now?" she said, sounding as if she were struggling with rage. "While you watch us? With Luke. Here in the castle?" she tried hitting him again. She grunted when she missed. She tried again, angrier, she almost got him but when he deflected her, he also kicked her. She fell into the grass. "It's like a bed of—it is a bed of flowers! Why try to make me think it will be like this in conflict?!" she jumped and turned around. "It's not."

Luke seemed nervous.

"Father, did you find out what my injuries were?"

Anakin paled. "I haven't the chance to look into it, Leia. But—"

"I looked at it briefly the other day," she said. "I could hardly believe I survived all that: blaster fire, hits, bruises, scratches, trauma—lightsaber wounds."

Anakin and Luke gulped. They stared at Leia sorrowfully.

"You…" Anakin breathed with difficulty. "You encountered the Jedi."

"I _fought_ the Jedi," Leia clarified, gritting her teeth.

Anakin closed his eyes. "Where?"

Luke and Leia stared at each other.

"Father," Leia brushed away tears, rudely rubbing her eyes. "How did Han Solo go?"

"What? Don't change the subject, and answer the question."

"You answer me first!"

"Have care of the tone you use with me, young lady—"

"Did you lie to me? Where did he go? Why did he go?!"

"Leia! You want the truth… fine. You will have it. That man was a criminal, there was a bounty after him—"

"Why did he go?!"

"I paid him! 80,000 credits and he promised to never see you again! It was not hard to find his price. He said you offered him so much, besides the trouble you put him through. Apparently, you caused damage on his trash-can ship—"

"Enough! Stop it, father!"

"You demanded the truth, Leia. Handle it as you might."

"Father," Luke intervened. "Don't be cruel."

"I've had it with you two," Anakin seemed incensed. "You cannot speak to me like that. No more back talk!"

"Fine!" Leia turned around, ashamed they should see her tears.

"Leia, we're not done here! Leia come back!" Anakin cried in vain, she kept running away, back into the castle.

 _80,000… 80,000…_ she felt abased. _Mercenary_. _Cold-hearted low-life._

Stop crying. Stop crying! She felt enraged at herself for letting herself be so affected.

"My Princess?" Padmé met her in a hallway.

 _Oh no._ "Leave me alone!" she cried. "I can't anymore. Please let me alone!"

Padmé threw her arms around her. "Never, my little girl. Never!"

Leia cried on her shoulder.

"I feel so much pain," Leia sobbed; allowing her pain out.

"I know, I know…"

They entered the drawing room and sat together. "The training went as well as I expected then?"

Leia grinned. "Mother… Do you think father would tell me a lie?"

Padmé did a double take. "If he considered it would do you good, it is possible."

"What if he saw it could only destroy me?"

"Oh I don't know, Leia. Why do you ask?"

"Mother, while I was away, I met someone. He was good, I just know it. And he cared about me and I… I am afraid something terrible happened to him!"

"My darling, I have not questioned you over what you went through, but if you feel it would do you good to talk about it?"

"No! Not yet."

"Okay."

"I just… I want to feel like a can trust Father. I want to be sure that what they said about him isn't true. The cruel emperor and my father can't be the same person!"

Padmé trembled. "And if they were, Leia?"

"No, don't say that! That would mean that you, too… oh I can't say it!"

"Let me help you, please."

"All right. I can't give you information… but can you?"

"Anything, my dear." She looked serious. "I promise."

Leia breathed some confidence into her tongue. "Mother, you served in the Old Republic. Can you say it was fair for the Empire to take over?"

Padmé looked ahead of her daughter, into the past. "I've thought about that every day for the last twenty years, Leia."

 _That doesn't answer the question._

"Were the Jedi truly evil, mother?"

"There's evil in all of us, and in the actions we sometimes do, Leia. Though, I am sure their intentions weren't ever evil."

Did they lie? Did the rebels? Did the… Jedi? On these answers could her entire life hang… she couldn't formulate them out loud. Luke was right. She couldn't handle the truth. But the time was coming when she had to. No other option.

"Is my Father evil?"

Padmé was silent.

"I am so afraid because… in spite of all that I went through… I am sure, I never saw true evil till—till I looked into his eyes! There were demons in his eyes when I spoke to him and I defied him… when he attacked you last night. Mother, are you not afraid of him?"

Padmé shed one tear, one that she couldn't hold back anymore. "Of him? Not. Of what he can do?" Sighed. "Terrified."

Leia was in despair. "Mother," a new questioned came to her, she said it before she even thought it through. "Who is Obi-Wan Kenobi?"

Throughout their difficult disclosure Padmé had been put together enough, but at the mention of that name she lost it. She almost fell back, the name having a powerful effect Leia could not comprehend, and certainly had not expected.

"Where," Padmé was excessively pale and breathless, "did you hear that name?"

"He was Father's old master? He is a Jedi?"

"Is?" Padmé's image disturbed Leia. "You speak of him in present."

"Yes, mother. I know where he's been. I've seen the Jedi."

Leia knew the treachery that came with her words. She should have denounced the old Jedi as soon as she came back to the castle. Padmé was a righteous woman. She lived for law. She would be disappointed in Leia. She would now scold. But she didn't. Oh why didn't she?

Leia expected many things from this revelation. The emperor's wife, Queen Amidala, would surely think of the Jedi as a criminal. She would want to know where he's been hiding. What he's been doing. Who helped him.

But Padmé didn't ask any of that.

She asked, instead, with the most shocking smile and relief Leia had seen in her entire life, "Obi-Wan is alive?!"

Leia could have answered maybe not calmly or normally, but she could have said the word yes, but for the sudden darkness she felt around her. Caging and apprehending the room. Anakin was standing by the door. And the demons in his eyes scared mother and daughter beyond anything that had ever done so before.


	34. In The End

Chapter XXXIV: In The End

"Answer the question, Leia."

The princess heard as if from a stranger.

This voice that spoke to her seemed somehow foreign in its hues. The man that raised her, that gave her life, knowledge, and practically the world—he had not spoken to her.

The eyes that burned onto her weren't exactly new. She had seen its yellow shade when he instructed them, and sometimes got carried away, excited when discussing the Dark Side of the Force.

Yet this was a stranger.

"Leia, repeat what you just said," Anakin demanded, still with the face and voice of the stranger. White face. Shining eyes. Evil expression.

Leia cowered, she took a step back as Anakin kept advancing towards her.

"Please," she begged, her voice low, already shaking. "Please not now—"

"Answer me!" he shouted. Leia in turn screamed.

"You said Obi-Wan," Anakin's voice also shook even as it thundered. "Why would you say that? Leia, where did you see him? Was he with the rebels at Yavin? He's the one who left you half-dead before you came to Coruscant?" he took a deep breath. "Why aren't you answering me?!"

Leia screamed and whimpered. She struggled as she felt herself being shook. Her arms burned and sored. She tried to free herself from this pain but Anakin was still standing halfway across from her. The touch of invisible hands made it all worst for the princess, who remembered as if had happened yesterday, all the times she had been helpless.

"Stop it!" Leia heard her mother's voice, resonating with greater rage, and woe. "Anakin, stop right now! You're hurting her!"

"I'll stop when she answers me!"

Leia's legs failed her. She screamed, not just for pain but for frustration. It was as if her body was no longer under her command. It was extremely painful trying to run when the Sith held her back.

"Father, you will kill me!" she cried. "Please let me go!"

"Tell me where Obi-Wan is!" his stentorian, monstrous, scary voice screamed. As his voice and words gained volume, so did his painful, invisible grip on her.

"Stop it now!" Padmé cried and ran to him. She tried to smack him at least to distract him but it was useless. He pushed her aside.

Leia felt herself being pulled, and every second, she was closer and closer to the Emperor.

By the time he had dragged her to him, she was on the floor, crying and sobbing.

He loosened his grip but didn't free her. "Now," he said, "I'll give you one more chance. Tell me at last: where is the Jedi?"

There followed a short pause that like usual felt a century old.

Leia thought herself stupid. Why didn't she answer the first time around? It would have saved her pain and tears. But just as she looked up from the ground, and to the Sith's yellow eyes, she knew.

Obedience was not in her nature. Stubbornness was.

She felt it hurt in her stomach. Felt it burn in her heart. Explode in her mind. This strange, natural, instinct to go against what was being requested from her. The rebelliousness was in her blood.

She was petrified, that fact she couldn't deny. Her father had used the Force against her, and she'll never forget it. She felt her tongue tremble and clash against her teeth as she finally could speak, the word not a full sentence, not loud or strong, but yet raging like an insurgent: "No."

Both Anakin and Padmé seemed astonished.

"What?" Anakin asked, slowly.

"You clearly heard me," Leia said, wiping tears away. "I can't—I do not wish to talk to you."

"Leia…"

"Never."

The princess sniffed like a child.

"My darling!" Padmé was obviously emotional. She looked almost proud.

"Neither to you, Mother," Leia coldly stated.

"Leia!"

"It's true!" the princess cried, rising; Anakin had finally let go of her. "Everything they say about you in the galaxy… it's true. Father, you're cruel. Evil. Beyond reason. And you, mother… you are even worse! For loving somebody like that! I wonder if that doesn't make you the worst of the pair—"

"Shut up, Leia! How can you speak to your mother like that?"

"I can't say what's clearly true, but you can choke and shake her?"

"Leia, please…" Padmé tried reaching out to her.

Leia flinched at her touch. "Don't! I can't believe I was so blind…"

"Leia, I don't know what the Jedi and the rebels said to you—"

"Father, there's not a word they could have used against you I would have ever believed! I defended you when even reason begged me not to! It is you… being in the castle with you two… You are the ones who take the blindfold from my eyes!"

Anakin and Padmé stared at each other for a moment, then at their young, damaged daughter.

"I thought that I had been hurt before," the princess said, without facing them, reaching for the door. "But this might be the ultimate low. I feel as though life has ended… but I refuse to let that happen!"

"Leia!" Anakin called, and he tried one more time. "My child, please, this is so important! Tell me, where is Kenobi?"

Leia shut her eyes tight. "Where is Han Solo?"

"I already told you."

Leia smirked, so sadly.

She stormed out.

* * *

As she exited the castle, Leia felt her legs quavering, though the scene had passed.

She found herself by the castle's gates, the guards outside looked like walls between herself and the real world.

She groaned and walked back, but found she couldn't go into the house. She tried to reach into the Force for some guidance but she was far too into the storm to think of anything. She paced around, trying again.

 _Don't think of them—they could only drive you to madness._

But think of him. _Han… Han… Han… What happened to you?_

She could still feel him, as if she tried, she might find him. Oh this type of ache, the heartbreak, was the more unbearable!

 _My father killed him!_

 _I killed him…_

 _Why did I drag him along to my doom?_

Seriously, had she just let him in Tatooine… he'd still be alive. He would be in a cantina somewhere, gambling money and his life, but free from the Skywalker curse.

Oh could she ever live with this guilt?

Could she ever forget about him?

It seemed impossible when his presence was so alive, so palpable in a fantasy way…

 _Ow._

Leia suddenly stumped against the form of her brother.

They stared at each other.

"Are you going back?" Luke asked, softly.

She turned her back on him.

"I still can't look at you," she breathed.

"You don't have to look at me. But I don't want you to be left completely alone…"

"Isn't that what you wanted of me, though? You wanted to make me forget about all the people around me, you wanted me to live without love."

"Without attachment. Without the passionate love that only fogs our judgment. The Jedi way could save you, Leia."

"Maybe all religion will destroy us, Luke. The Sith way… has not helped me in the real world."

"No, my dear sister," Luke smiled. "But why not give the Jedi a try? Come with me, with Master Yoda and Master Kenobi—"

"Oh don't even say that name!" she cried. "I never want to hear it again."

Luke seemed lost. "And what do you want?"

Leia looked down.

"About that pilot that helped you out…"

"Helped me out?" Leia repeated, as if he had said something insulting. "He did more than that. He… I can't even begin to explain what he became to me… and to think, he's gone because of me!"

"You are not to be blamed for Father's twisted methods."

"I just want to hear it from his lips. I want Father to tell me what happened to Han and Chewbacca. They were my friends when my own family turned its back on me," she glared at him.

Luke sighed. "I will help you."

"What?"

"I will try to find how he—I mean, what happened to them."

"How he killed them?"

"Don't fall into despair just yet."

"You don't know how Father's been acting."

"I can imagine it."

"He will never confess. He'll never own up to his crimes."

"Let's try finding for ourselves then."

"What do you mean?"

"Leia, you know how he, the pilot, feels. You know his presence in the Force. Reach out. Try to find him!"

"But it is so painful! You have no idea. I almost think my own heart deceives me—because I can still feel him with me. Oh Luke no. I can't. You're just going to make me cry again… Why are you smiling?!"

"I'm sorry," he shook his head and lost his smile. "I just thought of something…"

* * *

"Give me a moment before you say anything," Anakin sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Padmé sat on their bed, she couldn't stray her eyes from him.

"What is there to say? You went too far this time, Anakin. You hurt our own daughter. After Force knows what she went through… Oh how could you! I can't believe looking at you, what you have become—"

"You have seen and known me to do worse. Oh erase that look! I only raised my voice at her and kept her from moving. No permanent damage has been made."

"You're wrong. I believe permanent is exactly the word for what you have caused."

"Leia is too passionate. When the fever passes she will come to her senses."

"Will she? I mean, you never did passed it."

"A little madness might help her. She has so much potential to be the greatest, most powerful Sith. It hurts me to know my little Princess has to go through that transition Padmé! But it will be for the best. She will be so powerful one day, no one will be able to defeat her. She needs that hate. Hate will enforce aggression. I know in the long run I made the right call."

"How is making her hate us a right call?"

"She does not hate us. She might resent us, but it the Corellian whom she will ultimately come to detest. Heartbreak turns love into hate so quickly… I know that too well."

"She is heartbroken for that man… I don't see how she will ever hate him."

"I made the choice to make her think he abandoned her. She will come to hate him."

"Anakin, she does not believe you. She knows you're trying to feed her lies—and you're only making her distrust you more."

"I got carried away, yes. But she does not cooperate," he said in despair. "Did you hear her? For all the gods! Kenobi… Obi-Wan is alive!"

"I know!"

"Could you at least pretend to not be so happy about it?" he said with burning jealousy. "How could you after what he did to us?"

"Better not make me think about what he did for me… I might end up hating you, too."

Anakin took a calming breath.

"He attacked our daughter."

"We don't know that. The Jedi that has been spotted is supposedly young."

"That only makes it worse! More dangerous. He's raising a new order. You know what that means?"

"We could lose the war, Anakin."

"How can you say that so calmly?"

"My family is being ripped apart! The last thing I give a damn about is the Jedi vs. Sith, Anakin. I worry too much about my children. And about you."

"And what about yourself? Damn it, Padmé, why don't you ever worry about yourself?" the threat of tears made his voice shook.

"Me? What do I matter?"

"You matter the world to me," he gathered her in his arms, she looked away from his strong gaze. "Everything I do… I do it thinking of you. I can't even imagine what I would do… if they hurt you."

"Ani, the only person that's hurting me… is you," she said, struggling, as if the confession pained her more than it pained him.

"I know," he said with a broken voice, after a painful pause. "But in the end, it will make sense."

"Perhaps, but Anakin, what if by then, it doesn't even matter anymore?"

He let go of her, his hands leaving her arms to rest on his face. "I can't even consider that a possibility."

He walked to the door.

"Anakin," she called. "What _did_ you do to that man?"

"Your scared eyes tell me you believe I killed him?"

"I know you did. It must've been in a really horrifying way… if even you can't admit it to Leia."

Anakin looked back at her and smirked. So unhappily. "You misunderstand me again. I didn't kill him."

Padmé cried hard tears as she watched him go. The thing about liars is a time comes when even the closest person to them can't believe a thing they say, even when they say the truth.

* * *

Anakin walked steadily, sick of the nonsense, sick of it all.

He was the Emperor of the galaxy! He was Darth Vader!

He made decisions and the world had to adapt to them.

Leia's reaction had been unprecedented, so, perhaps, a change of plans would be better.

He entered the lowest region of the castle; the prisoner chamber, somber and grim welcomed him, couldn't possibly be worse…

He stared at the torture device he called Triple Zero, he asked him how the day had been—the results were rather pleasing.

"Captain Solo," Anakin said to the chained man on the floor; "rise."

The prisoner tilted his head slightly, he opened his bruised eyes; first he gazed upon the protocol droid, then after much hesitation, towards the Sith Lord.

"Droid, did you cut off his tongue?" the Emperor asked.

"I did not, Your Majesty. Would you like me to?"

"No. Did you impale his legs?"

"I did not, Your Majesty. Would you like me to?"

Darth Vader shook his head. He breathed hard as he approached his castle's prisoner.

"Captain Solo," he repeated, shortly out of patience. "Rise! Now! You still can do it."

Han Solo grunted as the Emperor used the Force to lift him up.

"Is…" Han Solo muttered, "Today the day?"

Vader breathed patience into himself.

"You are not yet so lucky. I made a promise to myself I would not be the one to kill you."

"That's… hard to believe, sir."

"It is _Your Majesty._ Rest assure, I came today only to ask some questions."

"I can hardly speak…"

"Oh you will speak."

"Why now, after all this time?"

"Trust me, not many days have passed since you came here."

"Maybe time stopped for me."

"Captain Solo, did you see the Jedi my daughter encountered?"

"Could you let me sit again?"

Anakin waved his hand, Han fell harshly to the grimy floor. He whined in pain for some moments.

"Well?"

"I… did not. We… I… I landed my ship on the planet, but Leia went to face him alone."

"Of course she did," Anakin's eyes shone with pride. "What planet?"

"Some swamp called… Dagobah, I think."

"Dagobah. How long were you in Yavin?"

"I don't know. Time stands still when you're a prisoner. Probably the only worse thing is being a slave. Wouldn't you agree?"

Anakin shook with rage, his eyes, once again, flashed yellow.

"Captain Solo," he said, almost unwillingly. "What is your relationship with my daughter?"

Han seemed to consider it for a few moments. "I'm afraid, sir—Your Majesty, I mean— that to answer that question I'll have to speak to her first."

The Emperor also waited some time to give his sentence. "Wrong answer," he said, imperatively.

"Uh?" Han was confused. "What would the right answer be?"

"None," Vader's voice was harsh. "You have no relationship whatsoever with the princess. I would advise you to begin accepting that."

Han released a long breathe of air. "I must apologize again, sir. But Leia and I already have a relationship. Granted, I can't name it, but it's most definitely there."

The man on the floor simply had to shrink in fear, as the Sith's yellow eyes came near his face. He kneeled before him, "Erasing the smug look from your face has been one of my greatest pleasures, Solo." Vader said, smiling grimly. Hate and anger pouring out of his skin. "But the smug quality lingers still in the tone of your voice… but that will change. Though it will not be today, you will meet your fate. I really want to give you all the attention you deserve. Right now I'm too busy. But I will be back, Solo. Of that you can have no doubt. Just wait…"

"Hey, Your Majesty. You take your time. I'm in no hurry."

"In the meantime," Vader said, his anger causing him to breathe loudly. "I can give you a thought to spend your time."

"Thanks, I'm all set."

"Listen," he almost lost control as he grabbed Han's collar. He let go of him and continued, "You may smile at the idea that you've done me a great favor. And my daughter."

"I doubt it's what I'm thinking about."

"Most definitely," he clenched his teeth. "Captain Solo, you've pushed my daughter over the edge. As you took her from my care, you dropped her in an endless sea of tragedy, danger and hatred. You gave her the opportunity to truly experience the Dark Side of the Force."

"There's nothing _Dark_ about Leia," Han interrupted. "Not anymore."

Vader went on. "She will be my best apprentice. She will help me keep the galaxy in check. She will crush down the Rebellion."

"No," Han interrupted again. "Leia does not hate the rebels _as_ you think she should. She even helped me save one of them. In return, they saved us. In some level, I'm sure she's thankful. I'm sure Leia—"

"It is Princess Leia for you," Vader said, looking disgusted. "The thought I mentioned before, Solo, is this: go every moment of every minute thinking that, she will be the one to kill you. Don't look so relieved—she'll do it!"

With that, he turned around with a swift movement, his black cape flowing black as he stalked away.

Han breathed out and let his head fall. He convinced himself he should feel some sort of relief, if his life depended on Leia, he should be safe. Yet he couldn't stop thinking about the strange shade, the odd, fiery flame that sometimes ignited in the princess's otherwise sweet brown eyes. And it was, he couldn't ignore it, scary and disturbing, because now he saw the flame come full circle. The flame took over that man's eyes, devouring and erasing any other color.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_ Way past the halfway point. Closer now to the end of this story. Many thanks to those still reading!


	35. Heavy Crown

Chapter XXXV: Heavy Crown

Even she was surprised, as it rarely happened, if ever, but tonight Padmé felt a compulsive need to be alone.

She didn't want to see anyone, not even the company of her children would have been welcomed. An overwhelming explosion of emotion burst into her, giving her a sense of anxiety she could barely tolerate. She told herself it was ridiculous to feel that way; she was a veteran politician and warrior, she had lived through great conflict, through great trials all her life.

Her strength had helped her all her life, which only made her frustration all the greater, as she walked the wide halls of her bedchamber; feeling trapped, almost clasping for air in a sudden claustrophobic environment.

She wished to find herself in Naboo.

She was damn sick of Coruscant; she once came to love the Capital, being a great symbol in the Old Republic; but those days had long ago evaporated.

She looked out her balcony and resented the fake garden outside her window. The trees had been planted, Anakin's gift for her, to remind one of Theed's countryside. The flowers in the city couldn't blossom the way they naturally did in her home-world. They looked exactly the same, but they were so dubious she hated them. Especially at this moment.

She longed for the clean air the open fields could give her.

She fancied she could see herself running, free and wild, through the green immensity she had known before. In her image she saw a child, crystal-clear waterfalls were her sole company. Sweet spring roses delighted her. And in the far distance, Padmé saw herself as she was _now_ , and she couldn't help but to shout out to the little girl, "Keep running! Don't look back!"

And what would have happened if the little girl had listened?

Surely, nothing at all.

Many people in her life had warned Padmé to not get involved in politics, even more so at that young tender age. She didn't listen. Neither should she have. She had her calling, and it was right.

There had been many instances in which she felt unsuitable for what the world was demanding of her, and in many occasion she had reached an almost breaking point—but she always did what her heart told her.

She didn't get into politics for glory or power. She saw the necessity for good in the galaxy and she set out to give her all.

Critics were tough, often times cruel, but she never let them get into her head… and she had to continue that habit—even if her critic now was the Princess of the galaxy. Her own daughter.

Leia might be right to judge her, but even so, Padmé couldn't allow it.

The general public would be right to scorn her, but even so, Padmé had to defend them. This Civil War had lasted too long. Any war more than a moment long is _**too**_ long. Be it between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance. Jedi Vs. Sith. Skywalker against Skywalker.

Padmé put on a gown, her sharpest heels, and her heavy crown, and made way to the Throne Room. She requested Anakin to be summoned, as well as the Prince and Princess.

* * *

Leia heard Luke's words and ideas, she considered them for a long time, but she concluded she couldn't listen to him. She couldn't—or shouldn't trust him. But it was tempting, if there was the slightest chance she might find out what happened to Han… it might be worth the try.

"How should I go about it?" she asked, a bit unsurely.

"Close your eyes and take a deep breath," Luke instructed.

"This already seems enlightening," Leia mocked.

Luke shot her an angry look. "It won't work if you have no fate in what we do."

"Fine! Eyes closed. Exhaled. What then?"

"Lose the tone, for starters. Okay… envision the last time you saw him."

Leia opened her eyes, she lost her smug expression, her features immediately saddened. "I can't do that."

"Do, Leia."

She closed her eyes again, the sudden movement of her lids releasing a few tears. She saw the scene playing in her head, Han attempting to give her one more kiss, her refusing, claiming she wouldn't have been able of stopping. _I should have let him kiss me_ , she sorrowfully and remorsefully thought. What she wouldn't give to go back to that time…

"Leia," Luke suddenly called. "Your emotions are overflowing. You will drown in them. Control them, sister."

She felt the pain of heartbreak in her chest. How could that ever be controlled?

"I'm trying," she whispered.

"That is your error. Don't go about this thinking the chance of mishap is there. Do it! Confident that you will succeed!"

"I said I'm trying, okay!" she complained.

"There is no try."

"What?"

He looked unsure for a moment, then he confidently said, "Leia, Master Yoda taught me a lot, and I've been meaning to share with you."

"I do not want to learn Jedi teachings!" she clenched her teeth. "Make no mistake, Luke."

"All I am saying… focus all of your energy on what you want to achieve. It is possible. You know anything is possible when you believe in the Force. The memory might be painful, I don't know, but move past it. See him as he was when you last met. Feel not what he means to you, or what the lack of him does to you. Feel his presence as it was. Search him!"

Leia listened to his words. She painted the picture once more, but this time, her imagination betrayed her, and she saw herself going for that last kiss that never happened, that she desperately wished she could live. And her despair ruined it all. She groaned aloud.

"Don't," Luke said in a comforting voice. "Don't give up. Use a different memory. Maybe one more memorable for being amusing than heartfelt?"

"Amusing!" she cried offended. "As if anything in life was ever amusing…" she stopped for a moment, remembering the last time she laughed. And yes, Han was with her, oh the ridiculousness couldn't take away the heart from the moment. Maybe if they weren't alone in the memory? Chewie and Threepio were there… Oh Chewie, whatever happened to him, too! She longed for his warm smile, his friendly banter… she remembered Chewbacca making fun of Han; the fancy clothes seemed ridiculous on the Corellian captain. How did Mara ever think to give him that—

"Mara," Leia suddenly said.

"Uh?"

"Mara lied to me, too! She was the last person to see them. She was the last person in charge in the castle before we arrived. Before our parents arrived. Before Han and Chewie disappeared!" she cried, as if she were finally seeing with clarity.

"Leia, you're losing track of what we're doing. You're not focusing—"

"Shut up! I have to talk to her. She has to tell me everything that happened while I was in the medical room."

"Your Majesties," a servant interrupted them. "Pardon me, Queen Amidala wants to speak to you."

"Now it's not a good time," the princess said. "Excuse us, and tell her to maybe meet us at supper or tea time," she angrily taunted.

"Maybe it's important," Luke said. "I say we should go."

"I don't care what my mother has to say. I've had enough lies in one day—Luke!"

Her brother had taken her by the arm, and in a childish manner he walked her to the castle. "Thank you!" Luke cried as the servant watched them with a confused frown on his face.

"This is ridiculous," Leia cried. "Stop that. Okay, fine! Let's hear what the Queen has to say…"

* * *

The Throne Room in most Skywalker castles was the same. It emulated the royalties of old, and while in places like Theed or Alderaan it looked immaculate, in the futuristic capital it seemed slightly out of place.

Leia entered the room, Luke still holding her arm, and saw the tall forms of her parents, each in their high mighty chairs.

"Are we supposed to curtsey now…" Leia begun but Anakin cut her short.

"Quiet, child."

"Oh pardon, Father. But don't just command, why don't you use the Force again to truly shut me up-!"

"You were told to be quiet," now Padmé said, in a stern voice. "And you will not speak while another person does. Especially your parents. Leia, listen and don't interrupt."

Leia glared at the Queen.

Padmé looked the very image she remembered from the hologram the rebel had shown her.

Queen Amidala.

 _Speak, then! I am sick already…_ the princess thought.

"Luke, Leia," Padmé begun; "You are of age now. You have passed your twentieth year, though you had no time to celebrate it. We cannot command you as if you were children—so please, don't act like children. Leave those rebellious attitudes in your teens, now truly passed," she glanced at Leia. "Do not run away as if that were a true solution," she glanced at Luke. "Listen and speak. Communication has been the key to civilization. First, we're returning to Naboo. That is to say, all of us. I cannot force you to obey—nor do I want to. We need to go home, and also, take action to move forward. Both in our family life and our political responsibilities. I will love your help as well as your company. Will you come, my children?"

Though there was reason in her words, and a certain amiability in her tone, she didn't look any less like the famous monarch Leia had witnessed being slammed by the rebels. The princess felt herself shaking, wondering how she could've been so blind to have never see it before; Padmé had always appeared a sweet Beauty, a kind soul—how did she miss the scary determination in her eyes? The absolute assurance of being right in her very countenance. Her mother's apparent riches were a painful contrast, too, remembering the fort in Corellia, the poor mother and her lovely child… what would they think of Queen Amidala? Probably even less than they did of Princess Leia.

Leia suddenly remembered the horde of rebels, circling her, as she thought herself about to be executed—she was saved by the rebel siblings who should have thrown the first blow—

Padmé put her hands together, over her lap, in a gest of impatience. Leia regarded her thin, delicate fingers, those whom Leia associated with motherly caresses and care; now it dawned on her how one of those hands wasn't her mother's. It was not noticeable, it looked like mere flesh, but the queen had a mechanical arm.

This train of thought brought her to look at Anakin's also mechanical arm. This one was very obviously unhuman. He took no care in covering the fact. Even under the black glove you could tell.

 _Gods, what a pair!_

Leia looked at Luke for a moment, she couldn't read an answer in his eyes. She spoke for herself, "I want to go to Naboo," she said. "But I will not yet go."

Luke seemed to be deep in thought. "I share my sister's decision."

Anakin finally spoke again, "Damn this diplomacy, it never worked anyway. Luke, Leia, we are all going to Naboo, later today or tomorrow. I don't care about baggage, Force knows you didn't bring any. When the security for the trip is finished, we will all go: no questions asked."

The twins looked at their mother.

 _Speak, mother…_ Leia wished deep down Padmé's angel would come out again, but the _ruthless_ monarch that necessity called back was here. "I'll go and prepare everything for the trip. And say goodbye to Mara Jade, too."

She left the Throne Room with an unreadable countenance.

* * *

Leia left and Luke hurried after her. "What are you going to do?" he cried.

"For starters, I am getting to Mara before she does. I will not leave this castle until I know what happened!" she walked hastily. "And you?"

"I have to go back… Leia," he pleaded one more time, "come with me."

"Go to hell."

Leia burst into Mara Jade's room.

Luke sighed and turned to go.

* * *

Mara Jade rested on a large couch by her curtained windows. She looked beautiful, her red hair falling to the side, her lovely dress accentuating her gorgeous figure… the sad look about her eyes couldn't diminish her beauty.

She looked up when she heard Leia enter, she smiled at the princess but only for a moment, realizing her strange expression.

"Hello my dear. What brings you here?"

"Mara," Leia could hardly be calm. "Please tell me you didn't betray me too."

Mara Jade frowned. "What?"

"Have you done anything lately you haven't told me? You know damn well what I mean."

Mara's eyes reddened. She sighed and shook her head. "I have betrayed you."

Leia looked away and she groaned like a hurt child. "How?"

"I can't ask you to forgive me—"

"Just answer me." She breathed rapidly. "What happened to the pilots?"

"I don't know why they were important to you. But they were and I am so sorry."

"Don't give me condolences! Just tell me what happened to them!"

"I can't—Leia!"

The princess grabbed her by her red locks, she pressed her against a wall, and with a dangerous edge, she spat, "I will kill you if you don't tell me now."

"Please kill me," Mara begged.

Leia felt like slapping her. She did. "Just tell me!"

"If I do the Emperor will kill me. I rather you do it, my dear."

"I can kill you after you confess. Mara," she sounded less angry, and purely desperate now, "please. Please tell me."

"Don't cry, Princess. I couldn't stand it: I sent the Wookiee away. He was no threat as long as he was away. I sent him to his home-planet. I am sure he's fine. The Corellian human… I didn't deal with him. But I am pretty sure he's dead."

Leia took a trembling step back. She did shed many tears—they would have made her choke and die had she held them back. Sobbing, she asked what planet it was, "Kashyyyk."

"I have to go and see if he's really fine for myself."

"Princess Leia," Mara said when Leia was by the door. "I called Him." She confessed, breathing deeply, her voice barely tangible above a whisper. "I told the Emperor you were here. I called him."

Leia turned to face her.

"I'm sorry."

"Me too," the princess said, raising her hand, choking the life out of Mara Jade.

The poor redhead gasped for air, she turned purple and fell to the floor. She looked up to the princess, not a trace of an accusation in her green gaze, but a profound regretful goodbye.

"Another traitor," Leia muttered, deepening her hold on Mara's throat. She felt the pain the action caused, she felt it till she also couldn't breathe. Leia had to let her hand fall and to her own throat. She also fell powerlessly, choking and gasping. When she hit the floor, she saw the form of her twin brother, standing by her side with a raised hand.

The sudden wave of air into her lungs pained her, and it caused her words to be blurred as they came, "That's… such a Sith move, Jedi."

"Old habits die hard," Luke said in a serious voice.

Leia practically dragged herself out of the room.


	36. Father And Son

Chapter XXXVI: Father and Son

Mara laid on the floor for a while before either one had the courage to address the other.

Finally, Luke approached her, offering her a hand. She took it after a little hesitation.

"Thank you," she said, now standing, face to face.

"You could've defended yourself," Luke said, somewhat annoyed. "Why didn't you?"

"I have no chance against a Skywalker. Nobody does."

"I know damn well—as you do—that isn't true. I know guilt can be hard to take, Mara. But don't take it so far as to put yourself in danger."

"Oh don't act like you care. And please leave me alone." She crossed her arms and sat on the bed.

Luke stared at her for a moment. "You know," he said after a pause; he sat beside her. "Last time I left I thought it best to not say goodbye to anyone. I still think it was the right choice, but there were times, when I was alone, that I wished I had had a warmer farewell."

"It was an unnecessary separation, Luke. You had no real reason to go."

"I wish I could talk to you about it," he sighed. "I know you'd understand… but you're afraid it might back fire… and now I see why. It was wrong of you to betray my sister—she's not one to let grudges go. She got that from my father."

"Point is I did—so just shut up and go."

"I still believe you wouldn't betray me—how foolish is that?"

"Very foolish," she smiled. There was a moment of silence. "Is this your idea of a goodbye?"

"Yeah, I am not very good at this. Care to help me out?"

She turned to face him; she took both his hands, slowly, as if afraid he'll flinch. He allowed her. She rested her head on his shoulder. "I will miss you," she softly said. "I always do."

"When I was little I had a droid instructor who told me war stories. He talked of soldiers going to war, never shedding a tear for their loved ones… which caused them to die on the inside. I never understood that. Right now I do."

"Are you a soldier going to war?"

He looked at her dead serious. "We agreed I shouldn't share anything with you."

"I've heard those old stories, too. I know the soldiers kissed their wives and girlfriends before leaving."

"Seems so masochistic, don't you think? They knew they'd never see each other again. Most soldiers die during war; and those who manage to come back find their beloved usually couldn't wait for them so long."

"Yes, Luke. You've become so rational."

He pulled her closer. "Not _so_ much."

He kissed her hard.

"Farewell," out of breath, he managed to say.

She laid down on the bed after he was gone. Still cherishing the moment. "Farewell brave soldier. Please don't die before the war is over."

* * *

He knew he had no right to play with her emotions like that. He had no right to enjoy her company so much. He was aware of how damaging a single kiss from her lips was to his faith. Yet he didn't care. Kenobi and Yoda be damned, she deserved that last kiss. They both deserved it. Even needed it. When the moment of his death came, nothing would bother him so much as to not having done it. The tragic end of his poor sister's lover's was enough to make him sure of it.

The Skywalker Castle in Coruscant had been a particularly favorite place for Luke since he could remember. Not for the castle itself, or the planet, but for the company he was always sure to find there.

What would happen to her now that he was officially out of her life?

If he lived to be a hundred he'll wonder about it, yet he was sure he would never try to find out. Let her be at peace. Please. He hoped Padmé ensured that.

Luke wandered through the many halls and rooms in the castle, many memories of years past coming uncalled to his mind. He could see a little prince running away from a little princess and a little lady; a fun innocent game he would never again think about. He could see a darkened corner, where a young and careless prince called for a beautiful young lady. Stolen kisses. Giggles. Fear. Excitement. Fights. Make up. Tears…

"What troubles you, son?" Luke heard suddenly behind him. He startled back, then he faced his father.

"Nothing," Luke said. "Why?"

"You were never a good liar."

"Yeah. Can you believe people used to say I look like you?" he said ironically. "I literally got nothing from you."

"You are my spitting image," Anakin said, angrily. "I also had little regard for authority figures." He took him by the collar. "Come, son. Let's take a walk."

"Um, actually," Luke stammered. "I kinda have to do something…"

"Which I'm sure can wait. Move, boy!"

* * *

"Is the fresh air doing you ill?" Anakin asked in a mocking tone, as they entered the garden.

 _You are doing me ill,_ thought the young man.

"I understand what you're going through, Luke."

 _Yeah, I doubt that._

"I'm not going through anything," Luke denied.

"It would be unwise to make any great decision while your mind is in such a confused state." Anakin said, ignoring his son's denial. "I would know. I took many important decisions when I was young, which I still wished I had had more time to think through. But it was a conflicting time. More often than not there was no time to think anything through."

"Guess there never is."

"But you _do_ have time Luke! You have all the time and the means in the world. That's what infuriates me. I have laid down everything to you in a silver platter… and you still refuse to take it!"

"That sounds foolish," he grinned, remembering Mara Jade. "I am so foolish."

"Quite. When I was your age I was battling for my life and that of billions. I had to hide my true ideas and feelings. I encountered traitors and enemies at every turn. I was astonished by the impracticality and stupidity of politicians. I had… in short, a lot to deal with—and yet I dealt. Only to have my own son put me aside twenty years later." He sighed, truly pained.

"I do care for your opinion, father. I just know I won't agree with it."

"Try."

"Father… I've always wanted to ask you…"

"Yes?" Anakin's blue eyes shone bright with hope.

"When did you start turning against the Jedi? I mean," he corrected quickly. "When did you lean closer towards Sith ideals?"

"I suppose I was never fully indoctrinated in the ways of the Jedi. And I accepted the Sith… well, this might surprise you, literally the moment it was before me."

 _Not surprising._

"The Jedi way, and the Sith… sometimes I think they're not so different after all."

"Perhaps, son."

"Have you ever regretted your decision?"

"No." Anakin said without wasting a thought. "That would mean regretting your mother, and my children."

"You always said you did everything for us."

"Yes."

"That makes love seem so dangerous. Love is dangerous."

"That's true," Anakin grinned. "But it's the only thing worth a damn in the world. So, again, think son. Don't do anything rash yet. You haven't lived. You will only after you find love."

"Is that the future you want for me?"

"It is. I will love the day I see you married, with your own children. Maybe that day you'll finally understand me."

"I'm sorry, Father, but that day will never come. I will never marry—let alone have offspring."

"Hush, you're too young now, of course. With age it will all change."

"What if I marry now?"

"It would be a mistake. You need to mature into a man first."

"Weren't you in your late teens when you married mother?"

"Yes, but…" Anakin was lost for words. He and Luke shared a chuckle. "That's different."

"Right."

Anakin put his flesh hand over his son's shoulder. "I wish you would come to me for advice more often."

"In the past that never worked well. You don't know how to give advice father. Pardon, you only know how to command."

"Don't ruin the moment, Luke. And if I command is because you never listen to any advice!"

"You're one to talk. I never listen? Well, that's the one thing I learned from you."

"Quiet, Luke. You are on the edge of disrespect again!"

"See? Quiet… Quiet… Listen. That's all there is with you. Things will never change. You. Will. Never. Change. I am glad I could confirm that."

"You are too old to play the misunderstood teen, my boy. Just admit you hate being obedient, and that's the issue here."

"That's the issue? You make things so simple, father…"

"Calm down, Luke. Though it might be hard for you to believe it, I was once in your place, and I know that it's not easy. So again, prepare before you act. Don't make any decisions now!"

 _Wouldn't you love that…_

"I have to. And I have to go."

"What?"

Luke shook his head, as if suddenly aware.

"I know what this is about." Anakin said. "You _do_ want to go on and marry."

"Uh?"

"Mara Jade. Son, you know I don't approve."

"Did the Jedi disapproving of mother stop you?"

"That's absolutely different! They wouldn't have approved of anyone period. I have great hopes for you, and I wouldn't waste you on _that_ girl!"

"You have great hopes for me. Funny, lots of people do."

"I don't understand you."

"You never will."

 _I know it now._

"I have to go." Luke said in a most pained voice.

"Take your time," Anakin said in an understanding tone, one Luke hadn't expect. It affected the young prince so much he almost changed his mind. But he couldn't… _I know I have to go…_

* * *

Luke left his father with an emotional heart, remembering why he hadn't said goodbye to anyone last time he left.

It was torturous, and it made him—he couldn't believe it— not want to go!

He decided he should avoid seeing his mother or his sister at all costs. Those would be encounters he'd not get over.

He decided he couldn't waste more time. He entered the room in which he knew he'd find R2-D2. Like he expected he found his droid bickering with his counterpart.

"I don't know what's happening to the royal family," 3PO was moaning. "Granted, only Queen Amidala received a truly formal education, but the twins at least should've taken something from their upbringing."

R2 beeped many shut up's.

"Um, hi guys," Luke smiled at Threepio's sudden distress. "Sorry to interrupt. Artoo, I'm going to check something on the ship. Do you want to come?"

"Oh surely, Master!" the golden droid exclaimed though he hadn't been invited to go.

"Um," Luke couldn't find the words to get rid of him without hurting his feelings. So he just let him tag alone, figuring on the way there C-3PO would go back himself.

The young prince and the two droids entered the massive hangar of the Skywalker Castle.

They passed by many guards, many soldiers. Luke could see the party that was meant to accompany the family on the trip to Naboo.

He passed the many large, impressive ships and vessels. He almost wished to inspect a few of them, knowing he would probably never see, let alone fly, an imperial ship. And if he did see one again… it would probably be a less thrilling experience.

As he was pacing, again trying to think of words to rid himself of 3PO, Luke noticed a ship he had not seen before. This was no imperial ship. He got closer, regarding the almost pathetic spaceship; up-close it looked worse. He wondered how Leia managed to survive in such a thing for so long… Of course, it was not her merit, he grinned, now able to touch the Corellian freighter. The Corellian…

"You seem intrigued by the Millennium Falcon," 3PO suddenly said. "Captain Solo claims it is the fastest ship in the galaxy. By my recollection, though I am not so familiar with all the ships in the galaxy, I would still say he wasn't entirely dishonest about it."

"So the looks are deceiving?" Luke smiled.

"The looks are deceiving," 3PO agreed.

It was a curiosity he just had to ease…

Luke entered the Millennium Falcon, followed by the two droids. R2 beeped as if rushing Luke, remembering him they had something important to do, somewhere important to be.

Luke brushed him off.

"Not bad," he said, exploring the interior. "Could be worse, the floors are yet to snap. Wait, Artoo. Let's look around. Threepio, you must know this place well."

"Better than I would like to, sir."

Threepio walked Luke to the cockpit. "Is it really so fast?" Luke said, caressing the controls. "How the hell did they escape a bounty hunter, and the freaking Empire at their tale…"

"It is not a pleasant tale," Threepio said. Nonetheless he begin telling it. Luke was for once very interested in hearing it.

"I do wonder how Captain Solo could've left his ship here," 3PO said. "I never saw a man so attached to his mode of transportation. Not even Master Skywalker."

Luke sighed. "Yeah." He looked around, sort of guiltily. "Well, he's not using it anymore."

R2 beeped. "I'm kidding Artoo! I would never—I wish I could ask the captain how he managed his famous escapes. Even more with my sister, probably nagging at his ear every moment. May he rest—" he cleared his throat. "Threepio, what was he like?"

"Your Highness—I mean Master Luke; oh I know you don't like your royal title, sir—"

"Threepio!"

"Right. Pardon me. Oh sir, do you know if Captain Solo is all right?"

"My friend, you sound worried? Was he so nice to you?"

"Oh quite the contrary, sir. But he did save our lives. And he really seemed to care for the princess."

Luke sat on the captain's usual seat. "May the Force be with him."

* * *

Leia hated, she _dreaded_ with all her being whenever she felt her heart beat in that violent way. Why did human beings have such strong emotions if they were impossible to control? She was tired of feeling so much. As she paced, walking in anger, she couldn't help punching the walls and groaning at every step.

Damn Luke, he should've let her kill Mara.

Damn Mara, she was like a sister and yet she betrayed her.

Damn them all! For making her suffer so.

But she didn't curse anyone now as much as she cursed Han.

What if she didn't care about him? How easy would her life be right now?!

What if he was just the pilot she found in a dirty cantina? What if his disappearance meant nothing to her? What if she was still oblivious about everything?

Well, she was yet oblivious about the one thing she cared most about.

How did her father kill him?

Oh she still couldn't accept it. How was it possible that she was never to see him again?

She remembered still the sweet taste of his lips, the excitement in his very touch, the happiness he could bring… she felt him. She felt him still within her heart, so close, and yet so far… she felt him… in the Force.

The strong presence of her father clouded the feeling she was experiencing.

His dark, strong presence within the Force could make apparent that he was the only being in the galaxy. She walked further till she couldn't feel her father and master.

A lighter presence, the one she knew so well seemed to call to her. Closer and closer, here in the castle. She walked faster and faster till she was practically running. She didn't want to let it escape, she didn't want it to fade… till it inevitably did, her father coming after her erasing everything.

"Why were you running, Leia?" he asked, confused.

She seemed to not hear. Her starry eyes looking ahead, as if in a dream.

"Did you hear me, child?"

She tried to block him. It was so hard when his presence was so strong and so connected to her own.

She tried to focus like Luke had told her.

She could hear Anakin speaking to her, but she wasn't listening to him.

She suddenly gasped, and almost fainted. "Force," she breathed.

Anakin stared down at her for some moments, completely bewildered.

He hadn't really much time to react, as Leia jumped ahead of him and ran fast, towards the dungeons.

"Leia!" he screamed but he couldn't stop her.

She could hear her knees cracking and her ankles almost twisting at the tremendous effort but she didn't care. When she met the guards, she ordered them to move away and let her pass. She could hear her father screaming her name.

She was let into the grimy hidden place. A droid, reminiscing of her dear C-3PO though completely silver, greeted her. "Princess Leia," he didn't bow.

"Prin..cess?" a low voice said, filled with disbelief.

Leia wasted no time. She struggled lifting him from the ground. He was chained, he said a few things that didn't make sense—he probably still wasn't aware that it was her who held him in her arms.

"Let go of him. Now." Leia heard her father say. The tone of the order left no hesitation in her.

She stood before Han, as a sort of shield.

"How could you…" she said accusingly at her father but her voice broke.

"Step aside, Leia. He is my prisoner."

"He was your prisoner. Father, you will _never_ hurt him again. You will never hurt anyone again! I promise it-I swear it! I will not allow it!" she spoke with the same assured determination and strength. Just about the same mad menacing quality.

"Leia?" Han seemed to recognize her voice.

He let his head fall over the princess's shoulder. She clearly relished in his touch. She breathed out with supreme relief.

Anakin groaned dangerously. "Enough!" he said. "I will kill him now. Before your very eyes, child. I don't care! In fact, this will teach you a lesson. Move aside, Leia. I will not stop just to not hurt you."

"I don't fear you!"

"Move now!"

"No!"

"Why Leia! Don't make me do anything crazy. Move aside now."

"I will not."

"Why not?!" he screamed and both Han and Leia jumped.

"Because I love him!" she declared, unashamed.

There was a moment of silence in which the two Skywalkers just stared at each other. It was broken only by the faint sound of, "I knew it," coming from Han.

Leia vacillated. "Father," she said, knowing she had to be merciless. "The rebel I fought in Dagobah, who left me almost half dead, he will not leave the Rebel Alliance. Not until the Empire is defeated. I trust him to do it. You were wrong, the Jedi are not the weaker ones. _He_ will win."

"We will not let that happen," Anakin breathed troublesome.

"Father," she almost dared not say it. She felt it cut her just to say the words. "The rebel who's bringing down our empire, the Jedi who will rise a new Order, who proved with me is stronger than the Sith, the Alliance's biggest hope… is Luke."

Silence.

"Luke is the Jedi helping the alliance."

Leia knew that look she saw now on her father's face. She had seen it before in herself. That look of utmost despair, of absolute heartbreak, sickening anguish, of shattered hope, terror and helplessness… and she knew she had to advantage the moment.

She reached down to her waist, grabbing a lightsaber that felt now foreign in her hands, and she slashed at her father. It is hard to say who was most astonished, him, falling back, or her, staring at the limb now on the floor...

He quickly tried to rise and she couldn't allow it. She waved her hand, quick as a predator, and she threw the torture device droid, who flew through the air, across the room, hitting the Emperor in the face, leaving him unconscious.

The princess held her breath as she removed Han's chains and urged him to run.

They passed by the guards, running together, holding hands. "You know I was just jesting before?" Han said in a dither as they hurried, running in no particular direction.

"What?" she said, stupidly, not knowing anything.

"About what I said before? I love you, too."

"I know!"

They stopped by the hangar's gates. Leia still felt she wasn't breathing.

"Give him your weapons," she said to the guards.

"Your Highness?" they shook their heads, confused.

She repeated her order in a harsher tone. They handed Han their weapons.

"Damn it, why do I feel like he's behind us?" Leia said as they kept running, looking for the Millennium Falcon.

"Maybe because he is."

Han looked faint and beaten, Leia felt like crying, just imagining how he ever could fly in those conditions.

She guided him, supporting him, almost falling; they stumbled to the floor a few times.

Finally Leia found the ship. The gates were opened.

She dragged Han inside. She screamed at the same time Anakin did.

"LEIA! LEIA! STOP THEM!" the stentorious shout echoed in the hangar.

Leia left Han and ran to the cockpit. She screamed again when she realized it wasn't desolate.

"What are you doing here?" She shrieked.

Luke seemed lost for words. "I was just—"

"Start the ship!" she cried. "Now! We need to get out of here!"

"Leia, I can't… I—"

She hit him. "He's gonna kill us!"

"Shoot em' now!" the Emperor ordered, as loud as he could. Everyone just stared at him, gaping.

"Your Majesty," the soldiers couldn't look more confused. "The prince and princess are on that ship."

"That ship is flying away!" Anakin looked beside himself. "Don't allow it! Shoot it down!"

His orders were finally obeyed. Too late. The Millennium Falcon had flown away.

The soldiers and guards stood tall, struggling to conceal the fear palpable within the hangar. But the Emperor said nothing. He punished no one. He just turned away.

* * *

The fancy drawing room in the castle was an almost cozy place to say goodbye. Mara's heart can hardly stand another farewell to a person she loves, yet the queen's presence is such comfort she cannot reject it. She even feels thankful for it.

All is well in the Force as she seats beside her, holding hands, saying her goodbyes… when all darkens.

The door busts open, a strange tall form storms in, scaring Mara and Padmé. It takes a few moments, but they at last realize it's the Emperor.

It had taken them time, because his face was completely covered, dripping blood.

"Anakin? What happened to you?" Padmé cries, frightened.

The queen is ignored, instead, Darth Vader walks past her.

Mara can't believe it, but he is coming towards her. He could easily call her to him, without making an effort; but she can feel, as the huge hand wraps around her neck, seizing her throat and her breathing, he wants to feel as he hurts her.

She feels herself being dragged by the throat and hair, as if by a monster, across the floor, blood dripping over her.

"Anakin, stop! What are you doing to her?"

"She will help me."

She wishes she would drop dead so she doesn't have to know how exactly she has to help him. She wishes to at least faint. But she isn't so lucky, and she is now perfectly aware of everything that happens.


	37. Kashyyyk

Chapter XXXVII: Kashyyyk

Leia did not entirely understand what had happened till several hours of travel after their escaped had passed.

She sat in the cockpit next to Luke, biting at her nails, her heart not beating fast as if she were running, yet pounding in a strange, constant manner.

"Would you calm down?" Luke said beside her. "What's done it's done."

Leia breathed out before speaking, forcing her voice to be relaxed. "I cut off his hand," she said to her horror.

"Oh," Luke kept flying without turning to see her. "Which one?"

"The metal one," she said, shaking her head nervously. "So I think it's all right…"

"You think it's all right?!"

"I mean, it's not like he lost anything new… he'll get another one— oh, loose that grin before I slap it from your face! Can't you see how freaked out I am? I never meant for any of this to happen…"

"Yeah, we never do."

"How are we ever to return after this?!"

"I guess we just don't."

He might've realized the hurt and despair on his sister's face, for he softened his voice and words, "I am sure his hand is the last thing bothering him right now, Leia. He must be going crazy looking for us."

"Well, that's a calming thought. Thanks."

"I'm sorry, that sounded better in my head."

Though very faintly, they both laughed.

"He lied to me, Luke."

"You always knew that. Deep down, you knew it."

"That didn't make it any less painful. There was a part of me that really believed… in him."

"And now?"

A somber cloud of rage passed over her face. "Forget it. I will never trust him again. I hate him, Luke. I know it's not right to hate my own father… but he earned it!"

"Hate is wrong, as you say, and unnatural. I am sure you don't mean that. The fever will pass, and you will forgive him."

"Never! After what he did to Han… I should probably go check on him now."

"He's better now, Leia. It's a wonder he's even _whole_ after being Father's prisoner for so long."

Leia shut her eyes tight, the memory so fresh it cut her.

"It will not go unpaid. It's not okay for him to just bend everyone to his will. And in such a violent manner. I _swear_ he will stop."

"How do you plan to convince him? You surely must be aware enough by now. Leia, our father will never change. The galaxy deserves better—"

"Stop. I did not come with you to join your treacherous cause. I will find another way to stop the Emperor and Queen Amidala."

"Good luck with that."

"Oh shut up."

"Where are we even going?" Leia asked after a while.

"I don't know. Away from the Empire."

"The Empire is everywhere, Luke."

"That's what you think."

"Please," she suddenly said with difficulty. "Don't bring me to a war zone. I can't again…"

"You're stronger than you're giving yourself credit," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. She didn't flinch from the touch. She almost smiled. "But don't worry, I would never do that to you. It is entirely your choice—I will never put you in danger."

There was a beautiful note of protectiveness on his voice. Leia needed it. It was everything to have someone she knew; someone who, in spite of everything, would give his life for her. The past hung still to torment her, but she was glad Luke was with her amidst it all.

She took his hand. Yesterday she might've killed him. Tomorrow she maybe will. But right now, he was her brother and he understood the position on which she was, the delicate thin line on which she trod; he walked it himself.

"Well this is touching," a voice said behind them. "I've yet to die, princess. In case you're still interested."

Leia's face lighted upon Han's presence. She ran to him. "You should still be resting. Don't worry, Luke can fly just as well—"

"Luke," Han interrupted, crossing his arms, eying the twins suspiciously. "So here it is, the famous young Prince Luke. With the equally young Princess Leia. Kid, I somehow expected you to be taller."

"It's nice to meet you, Captain Solo," Luke smiled. "I've heard a lot about you. Mainly of how you helped Leia escape the Empire. For that I thank you."

"I also rescued her from some rascals, Tatooine, a bounty hunter, and a _Jedi_ ," he said the last word with a kind of spite. "Not to mention the rebels."

Though he wasn't as tall, Luke still met his eye. "However it might've been, I thank you."

"She never would have been in danger had you not run, boy. I hope you realize the damage you caused—"

"Oh stop," Leia said. "If I can put all that aside for the time being, so can you."

"Who says we have to? This is my ship, Prince; and there really isn't much preventing me from throwing you out on the first system we spot."

There was a note of rage on Han's voice that Leia couldn't comprehend. Long gone were the days in which she used Luke's name as a way to taunt Han's jealousy. Too much had happened in between for her to even remember that Han didn't know Luke was her twin brother.

"Actually there's a lot," Princess Leia said. "Whatever treacherous things he has done, he also helped us escape. He is still helping us while you're too… um, sick to fly."

"I can fly my ship just fine, Princess," he said, sort of wounded.

"I prefer to wait till you're completely recovered. We might be attacked at any moment, you know."

"Fine," Han sighed. "Where are we heading anyway?"

"That's a good question," Luke said. "I was thinking Dagobah—"

"No." Han and Leia said at the same time.

"Why?"

"Father knows that's where you were hiding." Leia said.

"How?!"

"I told him," Han said.

"What?! Why?" Luke neared him, he shook nervously.

"Well, I _was_ under torture, Prince."

"I am sure he would've found out from Threepio either way. Maybe he did." Leia said.

"Threepio!" Luke called. The two droids appeared. "Did you tell the emperor I had been in Dagobah?" he looked at both droids.

Artoo beeped a negative. "Oh no, sir!" Threepio assured him.

Luke stared at Han accusingly.

"To be fair," Han said. "I didn't specifically say Prince Luke. I only said that's where Leia met the Jedi."

"But he must've made the connection by now." Leia said.

"But maybe a different one," Luke breathed with difficulty. "Master Kenobi, Master Yoda," he whispered the names. "May the Force be with them… Well, that settles it. We're going to Dagobah first."

"No!" Han and Leia shook their heads.

"I have to warn them!"

"Hey I'm sure their _Jedi insight_ will protect them," Leia mocked.

"And we have a place to be actually," Han continued. "Kashyyyk."

"Are we to visit the Wookiee Chewbacca?" 3PO asked. "Yes, I was wondering why he went away so suddenly."

"Han I know what I said… but we can't be sure he's really there," Leia said, contritely. "What if it's a trap by Mara Jade to give us back to the emperor?"

"We've taken many chances. This will just be another one."

Leia looked pensive for a moment. "All right. Set course at once Luke."

The young prince seemed unsure.

"I haven't used any of the weapons the imperials ' _provided'_ me with, kid. Don't make me use them on you. Do as the princess tells you."

"There is no way Dagobah wasn't attacked by the Empire, Luke. We would only give us to him if we go. Your masters are either hiding somewhere else—or they're dead." Leia said, not without the faintest hint of remorse.

Luke nodded and on they went.

* * *

The jungle of Kashyyyk brought awful memories to the princess. She deeply hoped and prayed to have a less eventful welcoming. Force knows, she could not even begin to imagine what she would do if again they should fall prisoners to the rebels. With this train of thought, she glanced at her brother, and she wondered whether his presence would help, or finish killing her heart.

"Why couldn't we have gone straight to the city?" Leia asked in a pretended annoyed voice.

"The Millennium Falcon is the most famous and wanted ship in the galaxy," Han said; "thanks to you and your prince. After all we've escaped it would be a waste to lose it simply parading ourselves."

"Yeah, that makes sense. I still think Luke ought to have come with us."

"Only I know where Chewie's home is, so I couldn't have stayed to guard the ship. And there's no way I would leave you alone with _him_."

"And Artoo?"

"We bring him so there's a small guarantee the prince won't flee."

"What about Threepio?"

"Oh the golden droid is famous, too, I am sure…" Leia stared, grimacing. "All right, I feel happy knowing he's bothering someone else for a change. I'm sure the prince is thrilled about it."

Leia shared his smile; she wished he would take her hand as he led the way.

"There's a beauty to it," Leia gazed at the sight before them. Rwookrrorro city. "It looks so different than what I had seen in history books and informative holos.

"I bet you didn't expect so many humans."

"I didn't expect any at all."

"Well, when the first Empire came to be, the Wookiees were enslaved. After Skywalker took over he freed them, which came as a surprise to many, as slavery was really booming the economy… that is until Skywalker brought the other slaves."

"My father outlawed slavery, Han."

"For convicted criminals, he didn't. Oh, they do not call it slavery, true. But even without masters the workers here aren't free."

Leia looked at the forest beyond, barely distinguishing the many humans and aliens cutting down tall trees. She walked unconsciously towards them. "Most of them are elders," she gasped, horrified.

"A lot of the convicts were so because they were slavers themselves. Poetic justice you might call it, Sweetheart."

"Or cruel vengeance…"

"There's a small percentage of free humans in the city. Let's hope we can blend in."

Leia still wore the royal gown she had been sporting when they first fled Coruscant. Between that, Han's weapons, and their astromech, she had little hope for blending in.

They stopped at a market place; Leia traded one of her earrings for garments. Two brown cloaks that well concealed them, and a cream-colored veil for her lovely face.

"Wait," Han arranged Leia's veil so that her features were still on display. "I would really miss not looking at your pretty face," he smiled softly and caressed her reddening cheek.

Through a struggle, she slapped his fingers away. "Stop that, this is serious." She hid again so that only her eyes were uncovered. She waited again for him to grab her hand, and when he failed to do so, she took it herself.

Artoo beeped something. "Quiet," Leia whispered and she also covered him with a cloak, but at every step he kept stumbling and they left him free again.

Leia's feet begin aching and she was sure she must have had blisters yet she didn't complain, even as night came and Han kept on guiding the way.

At long last they stood before a house as tall as the largest tree she had seen. The built itself looked like fine wood, and the flowers, though without color, were of the most marvelous scent.

"This is it?" Leia wondered aloud.

"Finally!" a sarcastic R2 bleeped.

"So it seems," Han said without a smile. His hand tightened around Leia's own.

"If he's no here—"

"Don't. We'll deal with it when it's before us."

Leia held her breath.

There was no doorbell. The handle was far too high for a human to reach it. Han knocked with his left hand, his right never leaving Leia's grip. His fist hit the door with a violence, so hard until his knuckles bled.

"Han, stop." Leia begged but he didn't listen.

There was a creaking noise and Han stepped back.

The door begin opening at a slow rate. A tall Wookiee stood before them. It wasn't Chewie. He cried something, growling so loud Leia couldn't help but to scream.

The Wookiee ran to them, he grabbed Han's collar and forced him into the house.

Leia and Artoo couldn't go in.

"Han! Han!" Leia cried, scared and almost weeping.

She tried to bang on the door but it was so hard she stopped after the first try, her hand shaking with pain.

She looked around. Not far the forest still stood, she called as many rocks as she could, and they banged against the door, some crashing back at her and R2-D2. The droid beeped something but she was so agitated she couldn't know what it was.

She cursed and tried to use the Force to open the door, but it was too difficult.

After what felt like a century long wait, the door opened again. She was so startled she threw stones towards the Wookiee's direction, but promptly she regretted her action. This one was Chewbacca.

Her heart was in her mouth, beating at a worrying rate, still she ran towards the Wookiee, who growled, Leia was sure something like an excited "Princess!" he picked her up like a little girl, and she cried on his hairy chest. "Damn you, you scared me!" she laughed amidst her tears.

Without touching the floor she felt as she entered the house. "Artoo!" she cried.

The little blue droid barely made it in before the tall door closed again.

Leia's eyes widened upon first entering the large cellar. Han was seated there smoking a cigar, three Wookiees talking to him.

Leia felt like smacking him.

"Sweetheart, come and sit with us," he said.

One of the Wookiees growled.

"No, I am not his," Leia said before she could stop herself. Everyone stared at her. She wasn't even sure that's what the Wookiee had asked Han, but she could swear it was.

"Not yet, that is," Han smiled. The same Wookiee growled again. "She understands a little. No, I don't think completely yet I fear we cannot discuss her so freely anymore."

"Han, why did you leave me waiting outside? I was terrified."

"Sorry, the walls are soundproof. I was just filling Chewie's brothers in as to our current… situation. They offered to hide us here for the night."

"We can't stay the night! Luke is waiting, and he must be so worried—"

Chewbacca growled something, looking down at the princess and the droid beside her.

"Yes," Han's smile faded completely. "That Luke. The Prince. The yellow pain they call Threepio's with him."

"Tell them I am very thankful for their offer, but we have to go." She looked at Chewbacca for a moment, wondering if he would go with them.

"Right," Han sighed. "Time is precious, and not to waste anymore. Come on, Chewie. I refused to have my ship piloted by that rich prick for another travel."

The Princess neared the two Wookiees that had scanned her so. She took a bow, "I will come back again. I will try to help however I can. It is so grim watching slaves work on the outskirts of the town."

They both growled furiously.

"Yes, they are slaves!" she argued, hoping she had caught the meaning again.

"Next thing I know you won't need interpreters," Han grinned. "Let's go before they rip your arms out. Insolent princess."

Leia glared at Chewbacca's brothers. Let them try…

Leia walked out and the others followed.

Chewie lingered until he finally caught up to them, and he opened the door.

* * *

Leia couldn't lie to herself, the city at night was scary. The constant, incoherent sound of thousands of Wookiees growling was an unsettling thing. The screams of the convicts working, who clearly at that time could no longer withstand the tiring working day. It all seemed like too much.

"I am glad you're all right Chewie," she said to the Wookiee, trying to convince at least them that she wasn't afraid. He growled and gave her a hug. Han told them to shut up.

It was safer to be quiet. How wondrous Chewbacca was not being watched after having been linked to them…

A few merchants tried to get their attention, which they of course refused.

How conspicuous must we look? Leia thought.

Artoo beeped, and Leia was thankful Threepio wasn't there to translate, for the small droid had no trouble complaining about captain Solo leaving the ship so afar.

Leia considered for a moment that maybe they should had stayed at Chewie's house for the night. She wasn't sure how much longer she could walk.

"Stop," she breathed out. "Please, just a moment."

"We have to get there before sunrise, Leia. You said so yourself."

"I know." Shut up. "A few moments won't hurt. This planet is safe."

Something about her own words made her uneasy. Safe. Too safe to be true… why hadn't anything happened yet? She shivered even amidst her sweaty body. She removed the veil and threw away her cloak.

"What are you doing?"

"I am burning up. No one's here… and I need to breathe."

Even R2 warned her against it.

"Just because we have been lucky so far doesn't mean things can't change on a second," Han warned. "And—"

There came the loud noise of spaceships.

"Uh oh."

Leia tried to put on the veil again but she couldn't find it.

"I have a very bad feeling about this." Leia said, fighting her fear and her own guilt.

"Maybe those are cruise ships," Han sniggered.

Of course they weren't.

Out of nowhere, stormtroopers marched from every corner, opening and entering shops and houses. Interrogating and fighting whomever they crossed.

"Nice dress, Your Highness," a voice said to Leia but this came from no imperial. One of the convicts had taken advantage of the situation to run away. "I found her!" he screamed and Han shot him.

He urged Leia and they ran trying to hide. Blaster fire echoed in her head. He stormtroopers were fighting, but not them. They fought Wookiees who had attacked first the imperials for having disrupted the city, causing the outlaws to escape.

"What do we do?" Leia asked.

"Run and mix till we're out of here."

Since she couldn't think of a better plan, she was okay with following his.

One of the shots got Chewbacca, he growled but seemed unfazed.

"Come on!" Leia entered a store and she threw herself on the floor.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I am gathering my breath!"

"We have to get to the ship!"

"We will die before reaching it!"

"You pretend we stay here until the battle's over?"

"I don't know, Han. I just know I don't want any of us to die here tonight."

"Listen to the girl," a high-pitched voice said. They turned to see a young girl, hiding in the shadows. She must've been sixteen or so. A Wookiee and a human man were with her, sitting as if there was no battle raging outside.

There was a bottle on her hand. Cheap wine. Han hasted towards her and asked her for a sip. "You're too young for it anyway." He sipped for a long time. Leia shook her head in disapproval. Then she took a little for herself. She drank till the burning on her throat forced her to stop.

The man stared at Leia. He looked about Han's age. "That's a fine dress, and a pretty necklace, girl."

Han glared at him. "Keep your eyes to yourself man."

"Yes, do." The teen girl gritted her teeth. The Wookiee rose, he was small, Leia guessed him to be a teenager.

Leia rolled her eyes and took another sip of the cheap wine.

"You might want to pay for it," the man said.

"I do not." Leia didn't look at him.

The noise outside intensified.

"Oh shit," the girl said. "They're going to burn down the whole town. I think those are the rebels arriving now."

She ran towards the door and left it ajar. The small Wookiee by her side.

Leia was tempted to go have a look.

"How'd you know those are the rebels?" Leia asked.

"I am looking at them, girl."

"Well, if they want to play hero today who can stop them?" the man said. "Force knows, they are good at destroying attacked cities."

"Better than being sacked by the imperials," the girl said. "I hope the rebels beat them again."

"Do you think the Jedi is with them?"

"Possibly. Kashyyyk was very friendly with the Jedi. They fought with them to the very end of the Clone Wars." The teen Wookiee agreed.

"What about the Princess? Do you think she's helping them again?"

"Excuse me," Leia interrupted the conversation she so attentively had been prying on. "How you mean?"

"Haven't you heard girl? The Princess of the Empire herself is now helping the Rebel Alliance!"

"That's… absurd," Leia shook her head, offended. She spoke louder, as the noise almost swallowed her words. "You have it wrong, it's the prince, not the princess who—"

"No. I am well informed," the man spoke condescendingly. "The Emperor's daughter was abandoned in some desolate planet where the Empire is not even recognized. And the rebels saved her. So when the last attack in Corellia happened she helped save some rebels from destruction."

Leia was left speechless.

"What a hero," the girl sighed. "And she's only my age, too. So brave…"

"The princess is now twenty years old," Leia interrupted again, unsure of why that particular part had offended her so.

"And she's a hot blonde, at that," the man said. "Man, what I wouldn't give to have an hour with her—"

Leia saw Han fumed with anger, something she was sure showed in her face, as well.

"She's a brunette like the queen," Leia gritted her teeth.

"No-uh. She's blonde like the emperor."

Leia wanted to slap them.

"I heard she enjoys the occasional drink, and is quite promiscuous," Han said in an apparent serious voice.

"Yeah, that too." The girl agreed.

"Well, it's good to know the general public is so well informed in regards to politics," Leia sighed.

"What's politics?" the girl asked.

The level of ignorance made the princess wish for a minute the sky would fall on them.

Han laughed—till an explosion bursts next door.

"Time to get out of here!" Leia wasn't sure of who said that.

The man grabbed her breast and snatched the necklace that hung above it. The three strangers ran from the place.

"Hey!" Leia screamed.

"Sweetheart, it's just a piece of jewelry—"

Leia didn't care. She was angry and being robbed only aggravated her further. She stopped the man with the Force. She choked him until he was gasping for a last breath.

"She also hates thievery." The princess regained her stolen piece. She walked over the man, and just in case, she knocked over the Wookiee and the girl.

The city was aflame. Time would wait no longer. They needed to get to the Millennium Falcon.

Han, Leia, Chewbacca, and Artoo were separated amidst the chaos. More thieves. Soldiers. Rebels. Fire. Ships. Troopers. Civilians. Death. Destruction. She couldn't bear to see.

She pulled out her lightsaber, she wasn't sure of what she would do with it. For starters, a group of convicts were stabbing a fallen Wookiee. She slashed at him and the Wookiee rose and growled thanks.

She walked fast-pace, aware of what the weapon in her hands would cause, uncaring for the fact. She dodged the fire with her weapon. The glow of it shining on the black night… till there was another one.

Atop of a car, many meters above, Leia saw the green shine of her brother's blade. It was strange watching him fight in person. It did not seem like her brother, he was well cloaked, but that wasn't the reason…

She ran to him, he grabbed her arm and put her in the car. "Where's the ship?" she asked.

"Where we left it."

"We have to go!"

"Not I."

He jumped from the car. Clearly she could go now. Like he had said, he wouldn't force her into battle. She spotted Artoo with Chewbacca, she flew to them and got them into the car. "Fly to the ship, Chewie. I'm going to find Han!"

She jumped from the car, falling on her knees. She saw the car disappeared and found she couldn't rise again. A Wookiee helped her up. She walked with difficulty, limping at every step.

"Han!" she screamed. "Damn scoundrel."

A man, probably a convict, grabbed her from behind. Her left ankle twisted as she fought him, and she couldn't stand. He positioned himself above her, fighting her arms to keep her still. She heard blaster fire and the man above her had died. A soldier helped her rise. It was a rebel. Her ankle wouldn't let her. "I can't stand," she bitterly said.

"It's okay," the rebel said. He walked her to a corner and helped her be seated. She expected to be left alone after that but he kneeled and checked on her.

"Not broken," he smiled. "I have a cream that will ease the pain."

He pulled a small jar from his pocket.

"I am Princess Leia," she said, before being helped any further.

He looked up for a moment, regarding probably for the first time her jewelry and dress.

"So you are," he agreed and put the cream on her soring skin and bone.

"You should return to battle. Why are you helping me?" she was perplexed.

He even massaged where she hurt. "You should be fine now. Try to rise."

"Fool now I could kill you," she looked confused.

"You didn't need to stand to do that… Your Highness."

She took off the earring she had left and put it in his hand. "It is very expensive, you might use it as you wish."

He nodded. "Thank you, Princess. I will leave you now."

"Wait," she said. "Could you help me find my… pilot."

He looked somewhat embarrassed. "I wouldn't abandon anyone in danger. I helped you. You thanked me. But I am not commanded by an imperial authority. Blessed as you are by the mighty Force, you won't need me. Best of luck, Princess Leia." He bowed to her, Leia wasn't sure if mockingly.

She returned to the battle with the intention of finding Han. But the Force was treacherous, and she first spotted that rebel that had helped her. He was in trouble. Leia had to kill at least three troopers to save him. Her brother appeared to smile at her. She couldn't return the smile. Now it was Luke in trouble. She helped him deflect some of the fire.

She now could see more standing rebels than imperials. She knew they still wouldn't retreat. Till the last man fell down there'll be a fight. How sickeningly long must the fight be?

More ships came, and Leia was astonished because men were not exiting them, they were entering! Both sides were retreating.

A ship stood out from the others. Not imperial. Not from the Alliance.

The Millennium Falcon.

"Luke! Please come!" Leia screamed though they were side by side. Her brother helped her into the ship.

Her heart calmed down only after she had seen that they were all inside. Han and Chewbacca flew. The droids looked after her. Her brother was there…

"Thank the Force," she breathed out in relief.

"What are you thankful for?" Luke asked, genuinely confused.

She only shook her head.

"I say it's my turn to decide where we go," he said.

"Yeah, whatever." She then thought better. "Where?"

"Hoth."

She didn't know where or what _that_ was.

"Han…Chewie…" she called. "Oh you tell them," she fell asleep, exhausted.


End file.
